Dei Ex Machina Rewrite
by The Lilac Elf of Lothlorien
Summary: When she was 18, Casey Novak left the magical world behind for a career in muggle law. Now, trying to help Harry Potter, a victim of abuse, she is thrown back into the life she walked away from and manages to find where she really belongs.
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTES: As previously stated, I'm working on a rewriting project. With this story, while I'm keeping mostly to the original, I think I will be pairing Sirius with Casey Novak.

HARRY POTTER: Dei Ex Machina

(Law and Order: SVU crossover)

* * *

_Manhattan, New York_

It was shortly after 9pm after another long day and Fin Tutuola was looking forward to grabbing a beer and watching the baseball game at home. He'd just wrapped up another awful case and it was time to put all that aside and feel at ease with the fact that yet another perverted soul was off the streets.

Leaving the precinct, Fin had just stepped onto the sidewalk, heading towards his car when he heard a squeal of tires and a car came screaming up around the corner. Not even stopping, the car blasted past, the rear passenger door opening and the body of a teenage male was thrown out, tumbling a few times, before coming to rest right at Fin's feet, making him jump back in alarm.

Kneeling down next to the kid, Fin checked for a pulse as he studied the myriad of injuries on the boy's body. Hearing the precinct door open, Fin looked up just as Detectives John Munch and Olivia Benson came out of the building, looking like both of them were also headed home. "Call an ambulance!" Fin shouted at Olivia who had just grabbed her cell phone out of its holster.

"This is Detective Benson, Manhattan SVU. I need an ambulance at the precinct, now!" Olivia said urgently, hoping the teenager was still alive. "I've got a young male, about 15 years old, multiple injuries."

The boy groaned and his green eyes flickered open as he tried to look around. "Where… who…?"

"You're alright, kid," Fin said, grinning. "We're cops. We're gonna help you."

"My uncle…" The boy rasped. "Dursley…" He tried to say something else, but the breath wouldn't come. His voice was even raspier as he said, "Tell… Sirius… not… his… fault…" Then his eyes rolled back and the boy lost consciousness.

It was a minute or two before the ambulance arrived, the wail of the sirens splitting what had just been a calm evening. Paramedics got out and started assessing the unconscious teenager's injuries while the SVU team looked on. "One of you want to ride with him?" EMT Haley Jones asked, looking at the detectives.

"I'll go," Fin said, climbing into the ambulance.

"I'm going to check out the name 'Dursley'," Munch added, turning back towards the precinct. "Guy's probably got a record."

Benson said nothing as she watched the ambulance drive away. After a while, she ran to her car and headed to the hospital to wait with Fin.

xxxxxxxx

A bright light in his eyes brought Harry Potter back to consciousness. He tried to turn his head but a white, hard, plastic collar prevented him from moving. He tried to speak, but there was a tube down his throat. His whole body ached and he wondered where he was. A hospital, probably, but where? He could barely remember where he was.

Eyes frantically darting about, Harry finally saw someone who looked like the police officer who had helped him a short while ago.

Fin saw that the kid was scared and sidled next to the kid's gurney, putting a hand on the teenager's uninjured arm. "It's okay, kid. You're safe. We're gonna help you, okay?"

Harry tried to nod, momentarily forgetting that he couldn't move his neck.

This couldn't be happening… The trip with the Dursleys had started out so nicely…

A week ago, Grunnings had promoted Vernon Dursley and had sent the three Dursleys and Harry to New York while Vernon attended a business conference.

The hotel had been wonderful with full bar privileges for Vernon who had spent every evening getting drunk as a skunk before somehow staggering up to his room and passing out on the bed.

Petunia had spent most of her time going around to the various shops while Dudley had been practically eating his way across New York.

Harry, on the other hand, had spent much of his time either sitting by the hotel pool, tanning, or in the hotel work-out room. Since the Dursleys were pretty much leaving him alone, he figured it would be as good an opportunity as he would get to finally work on building himself up a bit.

But today had been the last night in New York and Harry had innocently asked if he could go for a short walk before dinner just to clear his head.

Vernon, who had been drinking more than usual that day, had snapped and dragged Harry into an alley before beating and kicking him. Harry remembered the punches landing on him, and he could even remember the sensation of the bones in his body breaking. It was a feeling he knew well, unfortunately.

But all Harry could remember after that was seeing Dudley driving Vernon's car and speeding towards him. A flash of memory hit Harry and he remembered flying across the hood… or had that been Petunia throwing him in the back seat…? Or was it Vernon who threw him into traffic…?

Harry felt his heart rate slow and he felt sleepy… peaceful… It was like his whole body was finally resting after the long day.

"He's crashing!" one of the ER doctors shouted, shoving Fin out of the way. "Excuse me, Detective, but you need to wait outside!"

The doctors and nurses worked quickly to stabilize the teenager as Fin went to the waiting room to find Olivia leaning against the wall.

"How's the kid?" Olivia asked, looking at Fin's worn face.

"He's in real bad shape," Fin replied, wearily. "His heart stopped but they're trying to bring him back."

Olivia's phone rang and she picked it up, quickly. "Benson."

x

On the other end of the line, Munch was sitting in front of his computer as he spoke with Olivia. "Vernon Dursley is in town for a business conference at the Florian Hotel. I called the hotel before I called you and hotel security is holding him for crashing his car through the front doors. Security also noted that there was blood on the front of Dursley's car. He and his family are claiming the car hit a deer, but Vernon also sounds like he's completely hammered."

x

"Okay, Fin and I are heading over there now to talk to him," Olivia said, looking at the other detective. "Munch got a hit on Dursley. Let's go round him up."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was near 2 in the afternoon two days later when Harry opened his eyes again. The sunlight from his window poured into the room and gave the white walls of his hospital room a soft glow. Trying to turn his head, Harry found that he still had the brace on his neck and trying to sit up, he found that his back was braced as well.

Flicking his eyes around the room, Harry tried to establish what the extent of his injuries was. His left leg was in a full-length cast and was suspended in a traction-type rig. It felt like his right arm was immobilized and lifting it slightly, Harry noticed that his broken fingers and thumb were encased in the same cast that went all the way up his arm and almost to his shoulder.

The door opened and the detectives from the previous night entered the room followed by a doctor. Harry tried to speak, but the tube was still down his throat.

"You can't talk yet, son. You broke a couple ribs which punctured your lung so we had to intubate you to help you breathe," The doctor said, pulling out a pen light and flashing it briefly in Harry's eyes before holding up an index finger. "Track my finger, please." Harry's eyes moved and after a while the doctor straightened up. "No head trauma, so that's one bit of good news." Looking at Harry's elevated leg, the doctor added, "Wiggle your toes for me, son." Harry tried but he noticed that his toes didn't even twitch. Why couldn't he move his toes? The doctor pulled a probe out of his pocket and after lifting the bottom of the blankets of Harry's bed, ran the probe along the bottom of Harry's other foot. "Blink twice if you can feel this."

Harry blinked twice and the doctor seemed slightly relieved. "Well, you're not fully paralyzed but you've got a definite loss of motor function. I want to get the MRI results back before I come to any hard conclusions but…" Looking Harry in the eye he said, "There's a chance you may have lost the use of your legs."

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked, stunned at the grim diagnosis. Although what was bothering her more was how bluntly the doctor had phrased the news.

Dr. Kessler sighed. He hated having people telling him he should be more delicate with kids. But what difference did it make? Sometimes kids and young adults had to deal with the fact that they would have to live with permanent injuries. After a moment, he turned to Detective Benson and replied, "If the MRI shows that the spinal nerves are intact, then the odds increase that this is simply a case of spinal shock and he will _eventually_ be fine. But if the nerves are actually damaged or severed, then there's nothing we can do."

"You're saying there's a chance he'll never be able to move his legs again," Fin said, looking at Harry.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Kessler replied, repeating himself from before.

Harry closed his eyes but that didn't stop the tear that squeezed out. He couldn't move his legs… there was a good chance he would be permanently disabled. And worst of all was the fact that no one in the wizarding world knew about what had happened to him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Molly Weasley smiled as she affixed the newest hand to her clock. Seeing Harry's face smiling at her, she was happy that Harry was now a member of the family and if only she could convince Dumbledore to give her custody of the poor boy she could make it official. Just as Molly was about to hang the magical clock back on the wall, Harry's hand zipped to 'Hospital'. Quickly setting the clock down, on the kitchen counter, Molly ran to the fire and threw in a handful of Floo powder, shouting, "Dumbledore's office!"

Spinning through the Floo Network, Molly staggered out after a while into the eccentric office of Hogwarts' Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. "Harry!" she gasped, slightly out of breath from panic. "Hospital!"

Dumbledore rose from his seat and swept over to one of the portraits that hung on the wall. Turning to Molly, he asked, quickly, "Is Harry—?"

"He's in the States, Dumbledore," Molly said, still slightly breathless. "Harry sent Ron a letter a bit over a week ago before he left. Vernon Dursley got some sort of promotion and an invitation to some event in New York."

Dumbledore considered this and after a few moments, he said, "Molly, I am sending you, Kingsley Shacklebolt, and Nymphadora Tonks to see to Harry. Take care of him and tell me how badly the boy is hurt. I will make the necessary arrangements then."

Molly Weasley nodded and Flooed back home before preparing to go to the States.

"The kid's name is Harry Potter," Munch said to the Special Victims Unit the day after Harry regained consciousness. The detectives had interrogated Vernon Dursley once the man had sobered up. Benson, Fin, and Elliot Stabler looked at Munch as he continued with the report. "15 years old and currently living with his aunt and uncle in England. I spoke to the local authorities over there and they said that Mr. Dursley often likes to beat Harry. Told me they had a folder full of reports but the kid refused to press charges. Too scared."

"Nice way to spend a trip to New York," Stabler said, angrily. As a father, he could never understand why someone would hurt the kids they were supposed to take care of. "See the sights and dump off your abused nephew."

"'Dump' is the perfect word for it," Munch added with a grim nod. "Dursley got Harry US citizen status before they left and disowned the kid."

"Cut all ties so he has no legal bonds to the kid," Stabler said, looking pissed. "And Vernon Dursley's an English citizen so we can't hold him for trial unless he's extradited. I'd like the odds on that."

"What, you're giving up on me already, Elliot?" asked ADA Casey Novak as she waltzed into the room. "Dursley showed presence of mind to set this up before he ever left home. For all we know he also planned the hit and run."

"Yeah, but that doesn't still doesn't give us enough of a case to go to trial," Olivia Benson, countered.

"That's what I love about America," Munch said, sardonically. "Not only can we prosecute homegrown child abusers but we can go after the English ones as well."

"I'm going to see if I can get a judge to bite first," Casey said, looking optimistic. "If I can get a warrant, arrest Dursley."

"I'm going to check on Harry. Kid looked pretty bad yesterday after the docs told him the prognosis," Fin said, grabbing his coat and heading for the door.

"Excuse me," said a woman who had just entered the precinct followed by a younger woman with bubblegum-pink hair and a tall, black man with a single hoop earring in his left ear. "Can anyone help me? I was wondering if I could find out any information on Harry Potter. "

"Are you Harry's family?" Fin asked, setting his coat across the back of his chair again. There hadn't been any record in Harry's file of other relatives, so he was wondering who these people might be.

"No," the woman said, pleasantly. "I'm Molly Weasley. Harry is the best friend of my youngest son, Ron." Pointing to the two others with her, Molly added, "This is Nymphadora Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt. When can we see Harry?"

Elliot exchanged looks with Fin, Benson, and Munch before turning back to Molly. "Mrs. Weasley, do you mind if we talk for a moment first? We've got some questions you might be able to answer."

"Certainly," Molly replied, following Detective Stabler to a small conference room.

Once the door was closed and the two had sat down, Elliot said, "How long have you known Harry?"

"4 years this September," Molly replied, thinking of the first time she'd met Harry as he asked how to get onto the train platform to board the Hogwarts Express.

"Has Harry ever talked about his aunt and uncle mistreating him?" Elliot asked, looking curious.

Molly sighed and shook her head, regretfully. "Poor dear has always been so skinny when he eventually comes to my house during the summer. And he never talks about it but I've seen bruises on him and… and the scars… Some days I'm amazed that Harry's lived this long. Harry's uncle, Vernon, is the worst, but Dudley, Harry's cousin, is just as bad."

"And Harry's aunt?" Elliot wondered. Was she the cover-up type or did Petunia Dursley also join in on the abuse, he wondered.

Molly's lips pursed. She had never openly talked to Harry about the abuse so she wasn't sure how much to divulge. But still, if these police officers could help Harry get away from his horrid family… "Petunia Dursley has never actually hurt Harry as far as I know but she makes excuses for her family and covers up whatever happens to Harry."

"Have you tried contacting the authorities back home?" Elliot asked. This woman seemed to genuinely care for Harry so why had she not tried to take custody of the kid?

"The headmaster of Harry's school, Albus Dumbledore, has overall guardianship over Harry. Dumbledore was convinced that Harry was safest with his aunt," Molly explained. "But as far as I know he never even checked in on the boy or followed through on any of the allegations of abuse."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Casey Novak had indeed spoken to one of the judges for the okay to prosecute Vernon Dursley in New York but the judge in question, Elaine Fairbanks, had wanted more information about Harry's condition and prognosis before making a decision. England, sadly, had a habit of going lighter on child abusers as long as there was no sexual abuse involved.

Looking into Harry's room, Casey was happy to see that the teenager had plenty of visitors. Sometimes the victims of abuse were loners who didn't really have anyone who truly cared about the victim's well-being, so it was refreshing for Casey to see that that wasn't the case with Harry.

Fin was in the room as well along with a middle-aged woman whose back faced the door, a younger woman with pink hair, and a tall black man with a hoop in his ear. Opening the door, Casey looked at Harry and was about to speak when she saw who the older woman was. "Molly Weasley?" She said in surprise.

Molly looked up and after a moment recognized the woman who had just walked in. "Casey Novak," she said brightly, hugging the younger woman warmly. "How good to see you, dear. Last I heard you were on your way to law school."

"Yeah, a magical career wasn't for me," Casey said, smiling as she hugged Molly. "I'm an Assistant District Attorney now, working with the Manhattan Special Victims Unit."

"Casey, did you just say a 'magical' career?" Fin said, looking at the ADA like she had just grown a second head.

Casey looked stunned and horrified at her slip but Molly said, simply, "Casey is a witch. She was Head Girl at Hogwarts her 7th year."

"What?" Fin said, still looking confused. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"You might want to sit down, Detective," Kingsley said, calmly, as he offered one of the chairs in the room to the bewildered detective.

Unable to talk, Harry just listened at Mrs. Weasley told the detective about Hogwarts, the wizarding world, and of course about Harry and his parents.

Fin's expression changed as he listened to Harry's story. At first the seasoned detective had been confused, then skeptical, but after Molly Weasley had shown off a few simple spells with her wand, Fin was starting to believe.

"We need to get Harry to a magical hospital," Tonks said, looking at Harry. "Then he'll be okay and we can all go home."

"You're coming to the Burrow, Harry, when you're well enough," Molly said, gently squeezing Harry's shoulder. And this time, she didn't care what Dumbledore said. She would not allow Harry to stay with the Dursleys this time. Not after what he'd been through recently.

"It's a good plan," Casey agreed. "But if I'm going to have a strong case against Vernon Dursley," she added, regretfully as she gestured to Harry. "-I need Harry like this. We'll have to video his testimony as soon as Harry can talk but once a jury sees him like this, they'll convict easily."

"Anything we can do to help?" Tonks asked, eagerly. She had nothing against muggles in general but the idea of helping lock up Harry's uncle was definitely appealing.

"I need all the dirt on Vernon Dursley you can dig up," Casey said, quickly, thinking of how best to present her case in court. "And I'll want Dumbledore on the stand. Tell him I'm not asking." If Albus Dumbledore knew what Harry had been through—the abuse and such—then Casey was going to make damn sure that Harry and everyone else knew about it.

Dumbledore looked at the muggle court order Tonks had brought back from New York with both amusement and surprise. He remembered Cassandra Novak well from her years at Hogwarts and had not been surprised—given her interest in muggle law—at her current career. Still, the idea that Casey was calling him as a witness in Harry's case was more than a bit unexpected. "Miss Novak wishes me to testify against Harry's uncle?" the headmaster said, perplexed as he looked up at Tonks. "I was not aware that Vernon Dursley had become physically abusive."

"That's why she wants you to testify," Tonks said, curtly, trying to reign in her anger. "Because _you_ put Harry with the Dursleys in the first place. I talked to McGonagall and she said that she warned you loads of times. Arabella Figg told you that more than once Harry came to her house in the dead of night because he was afraid his uncle would actually kill him!" Tonks was shouting now and her hair was bright red in anger.

"I did what I thought was right," Dumbledore said, simply. "I tried to keep Harry safe."

Tonks tried again to reign in her emotions. How could Dumbledore be so bloody calm about all this? "Safe? Right now Harry is stuck in a muggle hospital because his leg was broken in 5 places! His elbow, fingers, and thumb were broken! His spine was fractured!"

This last bit of news made Dumbledore stiffen and he leaned forward. "What did you say?"

"Harry can't move his legs," Tonks said, coolly. "I had a healer take a look at Harry to see what she could do for him and she said that even if the damage to his spine was repaired there's still a good chance he'll be unable to walk."

Dumbledore sighed, leaning back in his chair. How could this have happened? "I had no idea that Harry was in so much danger," he admitted.

"Maybe you should have paid more attention," Tonks said stiffly before she left the office.

Dr. Gail Martin checked Harry's vitals and his breathing before she prepared to extubate the teenager. Harry watched her as she disconnected the ventilator and after a moment, Harry found he could breathe on his own. "I'm going to count to three, Harry," Gail said. "Then I want you to blow as hard as you can. One… two… three…"

The tube came out of Harry's throat and his violent coughs shook his broken body and made the pain in his back even worse. Breathing deeply, he took a moment to recover and let his lungs rest before asking, "How… bad… am I… hurt?" He knew about the fractures to his arm and leg but it was the injury to his spinal cord he was thinking about.

Gail sat next to Harry, trying to be as comforting as possible. "We got the scans of your spine back. It's not good news."

"I'm paralyzed?" Harry asked, softly, although he knew what the answer would be. It hurt to talk louder than a whisper so he kept his questions short.

"Not completely, Harry," Gail explained. "The nerves that register sensations are still intact as are the nerves which take care of signals for… well, your bodily functions to put it nicely. Unfortunately the nerves that allow you to move your legs were severed."

"When can I go home?" Harry wanted to know. He'd always hated hospitals—probably because he always seemed to spend too much time in them for one reason or another.

Gail shook her head. "Not for a while, I'm afraid. It will be at least 3 months before we can start your rehabilitation. Once your arm and leg have healed you'll start working on lifting yourself with your arms and navigating in a wheelchair." Seeing Harry's depressed look, she added, "Miss Novak needs to videotape your statement. If you're not up to it today…"

"It's fine," Harry said, his voice sounding a little stronger. He didn't want to talk about what happened to him but just the thought that if he didn't then his uncle might get away with what happened made Harry's stomach turn.

Gail nodded and stood up to get the door. Opening it, she let ADA Casey Novak in saying, "Call me when you're finished, Counselor."

"I will. Thanks," Casey said setting up the camera at the end of the bed and attaching a small microphone Harry. "Okay. Just relax, Harry. And if you need to stop, let me know."

Harry cleared his throat a few times and said, "I'm okay."

Casey nodded and turned the camera on and made sure it was working. "Okay. Let's begin."


	2. Chapter 2

AUTHOR'S NOTES: As stated before, in this rewrite I'm pairing Sirius and Casey Novak and I'm also keeping the pairing of Harry and Hermione.

And now for the most unlikely sentance in history: I LOVE the IRS! (Dontcha love refunds?)

* * *

"On November 2nd, 1981, Harry Potter was left at his aunt and uncle's home in England," Casey said, making her opening statement to the court. "He wasn't even a year old and his parents had been cruelly murdered. All Harry has ever wanted was to have loving parents. Instead, his uncle and cousin beat him on a regular basis, and his aunt used him as a slave. On June 8th this summer, Harry asked his uncle if it was okay to take a walk alone before going to dinner. Vernon Dursley responded by beating and kicking Harry repeatedly. Vernon's son, Dudley, saw his father assaulting Harry and got into his father's car and when Harry staggered out into the open street, Dudley accelerated and hit Harry full on."

Making sure that the jury was paying close attention, Casey walked along the jury box, making eye contact with each of the jurors. "Petunia Dursley then said that they had to dump Harry's body somewhere. They shoved Harry out the backseat of Vernon's rental car right in front of the Manhattan SVU precinct. Harry was an athlete. He played sports at the boarding school he attends in Scotland and was even marked to be captain of his team this year. But that won't be happening. Because of the action of his 'family'—"

Vernon Dursley's lawyer, Damon Fletcher, stood, irritably, looking at the judge. "Objection, your honor!"

"Miss Novak," Judge Samuels said, a note of warning in his voice.

Casey nodded briefly and went on. "Because of the actions of the Dursleys, Harry can't move his legs. The doctors have said that the damage to Harry's spinal nerves is irreversible. Vernon Dursley has put Harry in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. The defense will try to paint Harry Potter as mentally unstable and a danger to himself and others. Harry is neither. His only problem is that the people he trusted to care for him and protect him hated him. Find Vernon Dursley guilty of the charges and let Harry finally be safe with people who care about him."

Casey sat down as Fletcher stood. "Harry Potter is an unstable young man. All through his childhood he had fits. The boy needed to be restrained and when Harry was especially problematic, Vernon Dursley resorted to violence to save his family. When Harry turned 11 he began to mentally unravel, creating a fantasy world in which to escape. He believed that he battled monsters, befriended giants, performed magic spells, and that he had the ultimate protector in having an escaped murderer for a godfather. Dudley Dursley never meant to hurt his cousin. Harry darted out in front of him. There is no crime here, ladies and gentlemen. Only an uncle at the end of his rope with trying to deal with a mentally unstable child."

As Fletcher sat down, Judge Samuels said, "Miss Novak, call your first witness."

Casey knew that debunking the 'mentally unstable' idea was most important so first she called psychologist George Huang to the stand. "Dr. Huang, did you do a psych assessment of Harry Potter?"

"Yes, I did," Dr. Huang replied, simply.

"Is he mentally unstable?" Casey asked, simply.

"No," Huang replied. "Harry has been abused emotionally, physically, and mentally, but he's certainly not unstable."

Casey wanted to ask if Huang believed Harry about being a wizard but that question had to be phrased most carefully if Casey didn't want to add weight to the defense's case. "Did Harry seem delusional at all when you spoke with him?"

"No," Huang replied, meeting Casey's gaze. "Most delusional people can't live in reality. It's hard for them to shift gears mentally. They often display confusion and are even prone to hallucinations. Harry knows what's going on, he's aware of his surroundings and in my professional opinion seems perfectly sane."

Not wanting to go any further than needed, Casey looked at the judge. "Nothing further, your Honor."

The defense had few questions for Huang and next up was Dr. Gail Martin.

"Dr. Martin, please describe the injuries you found on Harry Potter on the evening in question," Casey said, looking at the jury.

Dr. Martin nodded. "Certainly. I found multiple bruises on Harry's abdomen, chest, and arms. Two of the boy's fingers along with the thumb of his right hand were broken from being bent backwards. Harry also had impact fractures to his ribs, elbow, left leg, and spine."

"Do you believe that these injuries could have been caused by some sort of psychotic episode?" Casey asked, knowing how the doctor would respond.

"No," Dr. Martin replied insistently, shaking her head. "The bruises on Harry's arms were clearly from a strong hand gripping him tightly. Additionally, the broken fingers and thumb were most certainly _not_ self inflicted in any way. Someone forcibly broke Harry's fingers and thumb by bending them back."

"In your professional opinion, then, how would you classify Harry's injuries?" Casey asked, looking to see how the jury would react.

Dr. Martin looked at Casey and replied, "The results of a violent assault followed by a hit and run."

Once Dr. Martin had been excused, Casey called Dumbledore to the stand. On a professional level, there was really no need to have the Hogwarts Headmaster testify. But personally, Casey believed that the only was Dumbledore would ever truly see what he'd done to Harry was to have the man sit through the whole trial.

"Tell me about Harry as a student," Casey said, praying that nothing said at this trial would require the need for obliviators later on. Not that it was hard to call in obliviators here in the States—unlike in England where the whole Ministry of Magic would likely be called in.

"Harry's grades put him 6th in his year," Dumbledore replied. "He's a very bright student."

Casey had started off with a nice, easy question, but now she threw the curveball. "Professor Dumbledore, after the death of Harry's parents, who placed him with the Dursleys in the first place?"

Dumbledore started at the question, but sighed. "I did. I left Harry on the Dursleys doorstep along with a note for Harry's aunt."

"Did you bother to check them out before leaving Harry?" Casey asked, fixing Dumbledore with an unwavering gaze.

"No, I did not," Dumbledore admitted. "I was operating on the belief that Petunia would protect the son of her only sister."

"And did you ever follow up on any of the allegations of abuse?" Casey asked. Dumbledore wasn't on trial, true, but she wanted to make sure that the jury understood the hand the headmaster'd had in the situation.

"I did not," Dumbledore said, sadly. "I never imagined that I could be so wrong about a situation."

"Nothing further," Casey said, trying to maintain her cool. This case was really starting to try her emotionally.

* * *

The day before, as Harry lay in his hospital bed, eyes fixed on the video camera recording his every word, he tried to remember as clearly as he could what had happen the night of the accident. The only problem was that everything had happened so quickly…

Seeing that Harry was looking a bit uneasy, Casey decided to start with the easy questions first and asked, "Why did you come to New York?"

Harry sighed, remembering the big to-do back at #4 Privet Drive. "Uncle Vernon got promoted. He got invited to a business conference and my aunt, cousin, and myself were invited along."

Casey nodded and continued with the questions. "Had your uncle been drinking that evening?"

"Yeah," Harry said, remembering the whiskey on Vernon's breath as he confronted Harry by the hotel pool. "More than usual, too."

"Did Vernon Dursley assault you in the hotel?" Casey asked, making notes in a notebook.

"No," Harry replied, his voice sounding stronger the more he spoke. "He dragged me into an alley behind the hotel. He bent my thumb back till I heard a snap… it hurt like Hell… then he broke my fingers… then he punched me in the side…"

Casey felt her heart ache as Harry described not only what happened on June 28th but 13 years of abuse. She never got used to hearing about kids being hurt. It seemed to be the curse of being part of the Special Victims Unit that she had to hear of some of the most horrific things that happened to people. And to make matters worse, just as she thought she could deal with anything, a case came along and tore her up all over again.

Plus, in the case of Harry, the muggle courts didn't seem to be anywhere near enough. Jail wasn't even close to being an appropriate punishment for what Vernon Dursley had done. The man deserved Azkaban and a couple of years with the dementors. But the wizarding courts had never tried a muggle before and it would take something of a miracle to get a trial before the Wizengamot.

It wasn't fair. How could Harry hope to get a fair fight in a room full of ignorant muggles?

As Harry continued recounting, Casey started wondering if she'd made the right choice in going into muggle law.

* * *

Casey watched the jury out of the corner of her eye as the video of Harry's testimony played. There were shocked faces and open mouths. Grinning mentally, Casey knew that no matter what the defense threw at her none of the jurors would be able to get the image of Harry—his arm and leg in casts, trapped in a metal back and neck brace—out of their minds.

Glancing over at Dumbledore, Casey noticed that the old man seemed even older as he saw what his actions had done to the innocent boy.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The next morning, Tonks sat with Sirius in Harry's hospital room, watching the two as they talked. Much as she loved her cousin, Tonks couldn't help feeling that something about Sirius seemed off since the debacle in the Department of Mysteries. Sirius seemed older, more like he'd been when he first got out of Azkaban.

"Sirius?" Harry asked, looking at his godfather who seemed to be lost in thought.

Sirius shook his head briefly, then looked back at Harry. "I'm sorry, Harry. I just… I was just thinking…"

"I'm sorry about Lupin," Harry said, quietly, feeling guilty for the death of his old Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Remus Lupin. "If I hadn't gone…"

Sirius shook his head, sharply this time. "It wasn't your fault, Harry. I wasn't paying attention that night. If I'd been more aware, maybe I'd have seen that Moony was in trouble."

"You didn't pay attention… because you were focused on me," Harry said, looking away. It wasn't a question.

"Remus was one of my best friends," Sirius said, looking Harry in the face. "But you're my godson. There is nothing more important to me than your safety…" Looking at the back and neck brace Harry wore and the casts on Harry's leg and arm, Sirius leaned back in his chair. "I'm sorry I failed you, Prongslet."

"None of this is your fault, Sirius," Harry said, earnestly.

"Yeah, it is," Sirius said, leaning forward. "I never even imagined that you could be in trouble. I should have checked on you more often. I was pardoned months ago and I didn't even think to visit you after you got to privet Drive. I failed you, Harry. I'm not fit to be your godfather."

"Sirius, you're not at fault here," Tonks said, looking baffled. "Vernon Dursley's to blame for this. You didn't throw Harry into the path of that car."

"Tonks, can I ask you something?" Harry asked, turning as best he could to look at the young woman.

"Fire away, Harry," Tonks replied.

"How soon can we get a healer in here so I can go home?" Harry asked as the hospital door opened and Casey Novak strode in, grinning triumphantly.

"Good news?" Tonks said, looking at the ADA, hopefully, although whatever punishment Vernon received it was most likely less than what the git deserved.

"Jury hardly needed any time deliberating," Casey said, still grinning. "Vernon Dursley will be in jail for a minimum of 20 years. No parole. Dudley's going to a detention facility till he's 21."

"Great," Harry said, happy that his uncle and cousin were finally locked up where they belonged. But after a moment, he asked, "But, uh… what about me?"

"I talked to a few healers," Casey said, her smile fading slightly. "They'll do what they can and then you'll be transferred to a local wizarding hospital for your rehab."

"Is Harry going to be able to walk?" Sirius asked, concerned as he caught the hesitation in Casey's voice.

"I don't know," Casey replied, shrugging. The last thing she wanted to do was give Harry false hope but at the same time, she was afraid Harry might start slipping into depression once he started really dealing with his injuries. "But the two healers I talked to will be here soon so…"

Harry sighed, hearing the doubt in Casey's voice. "So even if they do fix me I could still end up not being able to walk."

"It's possible," Casey admitted. Wanting to change the subject, she looked over at Sirius and Tonks, and asked, "Do you guys mind giving me a few minutes alone with Harry?"

Sirius looked hesitant to leave Harry but Tonks grabbed her cousin and pulled him out of the room, closing the door as she said, "We'll be right outside if you need us, Harry."

Once alone, Casey sat next to Harry's bed so that the teenager could see her clearly. "You know that the Dursleys aren't exclusively to blame for what happened to you."

"Yeah, I know," Harry said, thinking of Dumbledore and what he'd heard about the headmaster's testimony during the trial.

"What do you want me to do about him, Harry?" Casey asked, looking Harry in the eye. "I mean, we can request that the Ministry of Magic put him on trial for—"

"Dumbledore can't go to Azkaban," Harry said, firmly. "I know what he did. But Hogwarts needs him."

"Dumbledore put you with the Dursleys, Harry. If you hadn't been with them…" Casey had seen many cases of children shielding their abusers but Harry seemed adamant about not punishing Albus Dumbledore. Wanting to understand the teenager's decision, she asked, "Harry, why don't you want me to prosecute Dumbledore?"

"He didn't know about the abuse. About how bad things really were. It's not like I told him my uncle and cousin were beating me every other day," Harry said, defensively. "He…" There was a dilemma inside of him about whether or not to divulge what he knew about the blood protection. If he told her… Surely as a witch Casey Novak would understand why Dumbledore couldn't be locked up. "Dumbledore… used the fact that my mother died to save me to create a magical blood bond between me and Petunia," Harry explained, simply.

Casey leaned back in her seat, her thoughts ramping up. She now understood Harry's reluctance at pressing charges against the Hogwarts headmaster and after a few minutes, she asked, "So what do you want to do?"

"Other than get out of this brace?" Harry said with a half-smile. "The casts I'm used to. I've had broken bones before. Before I went to Hogwarts, I mean. If you're talking about Dumbledore… I think just him seeing me around Hogwarts should be punishment enough."

"It's your choice, Harry," Casey said, shrugging. She honestly didn't want to prosecute Albus Dumbledore in connection to an abuse case, personally. But as an ADA who'd worked the past 3 years with the Special Victims Unit, she was fighting every instinct she had by not arresting Dumbledore immediately.

"Can I ask you a question?" Harry asked, curious about something.

"Fire away," Casey replied.

Thinking of how adept Casey was as a lawyer, Harry wanted to know, "What made you want to go into muggle law?"

Casey gave a soft chuckle. "Well, that would be because my grandfather was a muggle and he went into the law. He told me so many stories about trials when I was younger and I was fascinated by the whole subject."

"If you had chosen a magical career…?" Harry left the question open, wondering what Casey might have chosen.

Thinking about the question for a moment, she finally replied, "Teaching Potions. It was my best subject at school."

"Did you go to Hogwarts?" Harry asked, wanting to find out more about the ADA who had just put Vernon Dursley behind bars.

"Yeah," Casey replied, smiling. "And as nice as I am, I do have a devious and cunning side."

"You were in Slytherin, weren't you?" Harry asked, thinking about what he already knew about her.

"Don't hold that against me," she said, smirking, knowing how Harry probably felt about her old house at Hogwarts.

"I won't," Harry promised as the door opened again and Sirius came back in followed by a short man with curly hair and a slightly taller woman with a pixie haircut.

After closing the door, Sirius said, "These are Healers Dresdon and Rousseau, Harry."

Casey stood as the healers pulled out their wands and started waving them over Harry's immobilized body, performing various healing spells and magical scans.

After studying the results of the magical scans, Healer Dresdon nodded as he said, "The leg is healing nicely, Mr. Potter. The bones are aligned so that shouldn't be a problem. Same for your arm."

A few moments later, the casts on Harry's leg and arm vanished. "That feel loads better" Harry said, happily. "Thanks."

"Don't thank us yet," Rousseau replied, frowning as she magically scanned Harry's spine. "The nerves in your spinal cord are severed. I'll try to magically stimulate them and we'll see if it works."

After a moment, Harry tried to move his foot but nothing happened. "I still can't move my legs," he said as Dresdon healed the fractures to Harry's vertebrae and vanished the back and neck brace before magically dressing him in boxers, sweatpants, and a short sleeved shirt.

"Spinal nerve cells can't really repair themselves," Dresdon said, sadly. "Even with magic, spinal cord injuries are fickle at best. We can stimulate the nerves to grow new cells, but the if cells aren't able to connect with each other to repair the damage, then there's nothing we can do. It's a flaw in the human physiological design, I'm afraid."

"So… that means that…" Sirius's heart sank as he took in this news. "That Harry will…" He couldn't even think about it, let alone actually say the words. Why did everything have to happen to Harry? Why couldn't the powers that be ever cut the kid a break?

"I'm going to be stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of my life… aren't I?" Harry said, feeling lower than he'd ever felt in his entire life.

"Unless some miracle happens… I'm afraid so, Harry," Rousseau replied, sadly. "Auror Tonks is doing some quick memory work on the doctors and nurses so if you want we can get you out of here right now."

Dresdon pulled out a portkey and everyone in the room, Casey Novak included, touched it. After a few seconds, Harry felt a jerk behind his navel and he left the hospital room at last.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Hufflepuff Health and Rehabilitation Center wasn't all that busy for a Thursday afternoon so 5 people dropping out of thin air was more noticed that it would have been otherwise.

Sirius got to his feet first and bent down to pick up his godson, almost shocked at how light Harry felt. And Sirius felt even more dismayed as he felt how bony Harry was. This kid needed to gain some weight and quick.

"Ahhh, Dresdon, you're back," said a tall witch with long strawberry blonde hair tied up in a braid as she came around the check-in desk. "You can take Mr. Potter to…" She consulted a chart. "Physical Therapy Room 5425. Healer Kitner is waiting. And Mr. Black, I'll need you to answer some questions for me as soon as possible about Harry's medical history."

An assistant healer whose nametag read 'P. Hachure' came up to Sirius pushing what looked like a modern muggle electric wheelchair. "Mr. Black, if you wouldn't mind…"

Sirius sat Harry down in the wheelchair and after getting his godson seated comfortably, looked up at Hachure. "How does this thing work?" Sirius asked, looking at the wheelchair.

"Much like the normal muggle one," Hachure said, showing Harry the controls. "The joystick controls direction and the blue button you push before going up or down stairs."

"Follow me, Harry," Dresdon said, heading down a hallway.

Harry moved the control forward and he headed along down the hall after Dresdon.

Sirius went over to the witch at the front desk and said, "You said you had some questions for me about Harry?"

The witch nodded and flipped a page of Harry's chart. "Do you know if Harry has any allergies or previous medical conditions?"

Sirius shook his head, no idea about Harry's medical history. He didn't remember Harry having any problems as a baby. "I don't think so."

"Okay…," the witch asked, scribbling something down. "What about muggle immunizations?"

Sirius shook his head, also unsure. "I don't know. But thinking about the muggles Harry's lived with, I'll say no."

The witch made a note. "We'll do a few magical scans to double check. Um…" Scanning the chart, she finally asked, "I'll also need the names of Harry's primary and legal guardians, also where Harry will be living with if he gets out of here before he returns to Hogwarts."

"Dumbledore _was_ Harry's primary guardian," Sirius replied, not wanting to think about what the headmaster would do. "But uh… Why don't you put me down instead?"

"Legal guardian?" the witch asked.

"Molly Weasley," Sirius said. "And Harry will be staying with the Weasleys as well."

"Duly noted," the witch replied, making a few notes on Harry's chart. "Thanks. If I need anything else, I'll let you know."

Sirius nodded and headed off to Room 5425 where he found Harry reseating himself in the wheelchair.

"Everything okay, Sirius?" Harry asked, turning the chair around.

"Just fine, Prongslet," Sirius said, watching as Harry came up. Trying to be upbeat, Sirius asked, "How are you doing in that thing?"

"Getting around is the easy part," Harry replied as he went back to a stack of mats piled on the floor. Sirius followed and Harry stopped the chair next to the mats and reached over, levering himself out of the wheelchair and onto the mats.

Sirius tried to look optimistic as Kitner—a wizarding physical therapist—helped Harry work on maneuvering in and out of the wheelchair as well as going up and down a set of practice stairs using the levitation charms on the wheelchair. Inside, however, Sirius felt his heart break as saw what Harry's life would be like from now on. How would Harry accept being unable to play Quidditch anymore? And what about Voldemort? Harry couldn't even walk! How was he supposed to kill the most powerful dark wizard in history if he was in a wheelchair?

"Sirius," Casey said, walking up to Harry's godfather and giving him a warm smile. There was something about the man she felt almost drawn to for some reason.

"I'm just thinking…" Sirius said, watching Harry go through his exercises. "You know about everything that's happened."

"I wish the wizard courts allowed for muggles to be tried," Casey said, eyes on Harry as well. "Then I could say everything I want to. It's hard hiding the fact you're a witch in the muggle world."

"I can well imagine," Sirius said, vaguely. It wasn't like he wasn't interested in what Casey was saying. It was just that he was lost in his own thoughts.

"And now suddenly being thrust back into the magical world again… I'm starting to wonder why I left," Casey said, thinking.

"You're a wonderful prosecutor," Sirius said, turning to face her. "You saved Harry from going back to the Dursleys… You could do a lot of good here." But as he looked at Casey Novak, Sirius was struck by the sudden thought that he didn't want her to stay here in New York. He wanted her to come with him.

"But that still doesn't change the wizarding courts," Casey protested, thinking about the injustices of the magical legal system. "We can go after wizards who attack muggles but not muggles who attack wizards?"

"We can't change it, Casey," Sirius said, shrugging. "It is what it is."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Casey said, sounding resolved as she turned and left the room.

* * *

Former judge Mary Clark had just finished making herself a mug of tea when someone knocked on the door. Wondering who would be stopping by unannounced, Mary set her mug down on the counter and headed for the foyer. Opening the door, she was only slightly surprised to see ADA Casey Novak standing there. "Casey. What brings you here?" Mary asked, curious.

"I need your advice," Casey said when her mentor stepped aside so that Casey could enter the apartment.

"Professional or personal?" Mary asked, heading into the kitchen as she gestured for Casey to take a seat in the living room.

"Personal," Casey replied, sitting down on the couch. "I guess you heard about the Potter case."

Mary nodded as she fixed another mug of tea and joined her protégée in the living room. "Hard case, I imagine."

"Judge Clark… if I tell you something unbelievable… do you promise not to automatically throw me in a nuthouse?" Casey asked as she took the offered mug of tea.

"First of all, Casey," Mary said, smirking, as she sat down with her own tea. "You need to start calling me 'Mary'. As for the 'something unbelievable'… Whatever it is, I promise to believe you."

Casey felt reassured, but was still unsure of how to say it. After a moment, she said, "I, uh… I'm a witch."

"That's it?" Mary said, sipping her tea, looking nonchalant. .

Casey looked taken aback. Her friend and mentor knew she was a witch? "You're not surprised by that?"

Mary grinned. "I told you my youngest son went to a private boarding school a couple years ago. I just didn't add that it was for wizards."

"You're a witch?" Casey asked, stunned that she never knew that the former judge knew about the wizarding world.

"Oh, heavens no," Mary replied with a small snort of laughter. "I'm a muggle and so was my husband. My son, Greg, is a muggleborn wizard. So… Now that that's out of the way, what did you need advice on?"

"The wizard courts can punish a wizard that attacks muggles but it won't prosecute a muggle who attacks an underage wizard," Casey said, drinking her own tea as she voiced her complaint.

"It's not right, I agree," Mary replied. "But what can you do? From what I know, not much has changed about magical law in decades."

"That's what I keep thinking," Casey pressed. "Nothing's changed even though it needs to."

Catching on, Mary leaned back in her armchair and said, "You're thinking about returning to the wizarding world."

"Exactly," Casey said, nodding. "I want to figure out some way that we can combine magical and muggle law. Who knows how many kids like Harry Potter need help."

Leaning back in her chair, Mary contemplated the quandary. "Casey, you're a fair yet strong prosecutor. You stand for what you believe in and you don't back down without a fight. With a wand in your hand… I imagine there's nothing you couldn't accomplish."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Getting back to her office late that night, Casey was surprised to see Albus Dumbledore standing by the door. "Pretty brazen move coming to see me given what you did to Harry," she said, not bothering to issue the man an invitation to come in.

"Do you mind if we talk?" Dumbledore asked, politely, as he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

"Make it snappy. I'm packing up my stuff," Casey snapped, going to her bookcase and retrieving a small, thin wooden case on the top shelf and wiping the dust off before setting the box on the desk..

Dumbledore nodded, understanding the woman's short temper. "I'd like to offer you a job, Miss Novak. I have already employed a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, but the staff change has left me without a potions master."

"Why me?" Casey asked, doubtfully. She'd considered teaching a long time ago but that was back when she'd first graduated Hogwarts.

"Your grades in Potions were the best I've ever seen," Dumbledore replied. "And I know that you wish to affect changes in the wizarding legal system but that does not mean that you can't explore other avenues in the process."

"I admit if I hadn't become an ADA I think I'd probably already be teaching Potions," Casey said, opening the wooden box and pulling out a beautiful olivewood wand. "But if you're thinking that flattering me will convince me to forgive you for what you did to Harry—"

"I am aware that I have done… unforgivable things," Dumbledore said, sitting down on the sofa in Casey's office. "But I assure you I thought I was keeping Harry safe. I placed Harry with his aunt because I sought to take advantage of a blood protection."

"I know about that," Casey replied, looking the headmaster in the eye. "Harry told me when I asked why he wouldn't press charges against you."

Dumbledore sighed. He knew it was a long shot but he'd hoped that she might consider the offer. "If you wish to focus on wizard law, then I will return to Hogwarts," he said, standing up. "But should you change your mind… you know where to find me."

Just as Dumbledore was about to close the door behind him, he heard Casey ask, "How soon do I need to be there?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"You're really leaving?" Fin asked as he stood in Casey's office two days later watching her magically pack the last of her belongings. Once you got past the surprise of it all, the magic thing was pretty cool, he had to admit.

"I just think that I need to get back to being a witch," Casey said, as the last of her things shrank and flew into the boxes on the floor. After closing up the boxes, she turned to Fin and gave him a smile.

"But we could still use you here," Fin protested. "You're good at your job." Besides, Casey Novak was one of only a small handful of ADAs who were up to the task of working in SVU.

"Vernon Dursley was tried here because the wizard courts couldn't try him," Casey replied, reiterating her reasons for leaving. "And even though I've done a lot of good for SVU, there are even more kids and victims out there who don't have anyone to fight for them."

Fin looked beaten, but he nodded. "I understand. You go do what you gotta do, Casey. I'll make sure they hold your job for you."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

Two days after Harry's birthday, Hermione stood with the rest of the Weasley family in the sitting room of the Burrow under an enormous flashing banner that read 'Welcome Home, Harry!'.

Harry was due to arrive at the Burrow any moment with Mrs. Weasley, Sirius and Tonks and Hermione was anxious to see exactly what damage Vernon had done. Neither Mrs. Weasley nor Sirius had gone into much detail leaving Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, and Bill to wonder just how badly Harry was hurt in the accident with his uncle.

When the front door opened, Hermione let out a small gasp as Harry came in sitting in the wheelchair. Behind him came Sirius, Tonks, Mrs. Weasley and a woman that only Hermione and Bill seemed to recognize.

Stepping forward, briskly, Bill held out his hand to the mystery woman. "Good to see you again, Casey," He said before kissing the back of her hand and giving her the best winning smile he could.

Casey Novak blushed as she caught Bill's smile. "You too, Bill," she replied, trying not to let her embarrassment show. She'd always had a crush on Bill and now that she saw him again, those old feelings stirred up again.

"Aren't you US Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak?" Hermione said, her eyes alight with curiosity and interest as she immediately recognized the mystery woman.

Casey turned to Hermione, wondering how the teenager knew who she was. "You know about me?" she asked, interested.

"First pureblood witch to go to muggle law school in America. Graduated top of your class and started off in white collar crimes before the death of another Assistant District Attorney ," Hermione rattled off easily. "You now work with the Special Victims Unit in Manhattan, New York."

Casey was impressed with how knowledgeable Hermione was. It wasn't often that a teenager was that well-read. "Wow," Casey replied with a slightly embarrassed smile. "Didn't know I was so special."

"You put Vernon Dursley behind bars," Fred Weasley said, grinning.

"Dudley too," George added. "That makes you special to us."

"Alright, alright," Molly said, fussing at everyone. "Everyone go out into the garden. There's not enough room to do this party properly in here. Go on, shoo! Out with you!"

Everyone headed out to the backyard where two long picnic tables were set up. Platters and trays of food magically appeared and as Casey sat down near the head of the table by Harry, she started feeling more at home than she'd ever felt in New York. She always felt tied down somehow when she was in Manhattan and while it had taken her a while to get used to life without using magic, it was suddenly nice to be back in the wizarding world.

* * *

At Hogwarts, Dumbledore stood in what would become Harry's private suite come September. There was a small bathroom off of the bedroom and a small common room which could be entered by a full length portrait in the Gryffindor common room.

It was a very nice room but while Harry would be able to get around quite easily the boy would still need assistance. But how to offer help without making Harry feel helpless was the question that had been nagging at Dumbledore's mind for the past few hours.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir."

Turning to find Dobby the house-elf standing in the room, Dumbledore was struck with a brilliant notion. "Dobby," the headmaster said, cheerfully. "I wonder if I could ask you to undertake an important job this coming year."

"Dobby will do anything Professor Dumbledore asks of him sir," Dobby said, brightly.

"Early this June Harry Potter was seriously injured," Dumbledore said, looking down at the house-elf. "He will be returning to Hogwarts. However, Harry has lost the use of his legs and will be needing assistance."

Dobby was stunned that Harry Potter had been so badly injured. But since the wizard had freed Dobby the least the house-elf could do was help Harry if the boy was disabled. "Dobby would do anything for Harry Potter, Professor Dumbledore, sir."

"Excellent," Dumbledore replied. "I would ask, Dobby, that you refrain from following Harry too closely."

"Of course, sir," Dobby said, nodding, his bat-like ears flapping a bit. "Dobby will do whatever he is asked, sir. Dobby still owes Harry Potter for freeing him."

* * *

It was near three in the morning when Harry made his way downstairs to the first floor of the Burrow.

He'd been lying awake for hours but still couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about what had happened and his mind refused to quiet down. And when he tried shifting his sleeping positions, he stopped, remembering that he couldn't move his legs. After a while, Harry sat up, lifting himself into the wheelchair and heading out of the room

Getting to the kitchen, he was surprised to discover that he wasn't the only one with insomnia tonight.

"Harry," Sirius said, looking up from a bottle of butterbeer, surprised. "I thought you were in bed."

Harry directed his wheelchair towards Sirius, stopping at the table. "I couldn't sleep," Harry replied, glancing at Sirius's bottle. "Got two of those?"

Sirius retrieved another bottle from the refrigerator and handed it to Harry. "I was just thinking… about Remus, mostly." Harry just sipped his drink, letting Sirius talk without interruption. "We were the last of the Marauders. And if it hadn't been for Remus, I don't think James and I would have become as close as we were."

"Sometimes I wish I could have seen what you and Dad and Lupin were like together," Harry said, a sad smile on his face. "Up to no good and all."

"Back when life was good and we were stupid teenagers," Sirius said, echoing Harry's smile. "I miss those days."

Looking at the motorized wheelchair he sat in, Harry added, "So do I." Seeing Sirius watching him, Harry went on. "I just I can't believe that I'm never going to play Quidditch again. That I'll never walk again… My whole life is different now."

"If I could get my hands on that muggle bastard for just one minute…" Sirius said, in a cold tone that Harry had never heard before. "That son of a bitch should be in Azkaban not some muggle prison."

"I agree, Sirius," Harry said, trying to calm his godfather down. "Believe me, I wish I had done something sooner. I hate being not being able to walk. But it's done and there's nothing we can do."

"If you're going to keep me up all night I might as well join you," Casey Novak said, grumpily, as she got up from the couch in the living room and sat opposite Sirius at the table.

"Sorry we were too loud," Sirius said, getting up to grab another round of butterbeers. Handing them out, he said, "Didn't mean to wake you, Casey."

"It's no problem," Casey replied, accepting her drink from Sirius. "I guess my mind is still buzzing with everything that's happened. Plus it's so quiet out here. New York is so loud, you almost get used to the noise after a while." After a moment she added, "I'm glad Molly's letting me stay here till I get my own place. I haven't even begun looking for an apartment yet."

"You… you're welcome to move in with me," Sirius said, not quite meeting Casey's eye. "I've got room at my house."

"I don't want to impose," Casey protested. "I…" Seeing the look on Sirius's face—that 'please don't say 'no', I'll take it as rejection' look—she sighed, and replied, "Why not? How soon can I move in?"

Sirius gave Casey a warm smile. "Give me a couple days to get the guest room ready."

Looking over at Harry, Casey asked, "So how are you doing, Harry? Really?"

Harry just shrugged, suddenly feeling like he was interrupting a personal moment between Casey and Sirius. "Fine," he finally muttered. But he wasn't fine. He was nowhere _near_ fine. "I'm…"

"Harry, no one could go through what you've been through and be okay," Casey said, knowing that the teenager was putting up a front. "It's okay."

Harry didn't know what to say. He knew that Sirius hadn't heard about everything the Dursleys had done to him and he was afraid of what his godfather might do. "I don't… I don't want to talk about it," he said, simply.

"It's alright, Harry," Sirius replied. "Just… We're here for you when you do."

xxxx

Harry woke late the next morning. He'd finally gone back to bed around 6 in the morning and had endured a fitful sleep before finally relaxing. When the sun coming in through the bedroom window hit him in the face, he decided to get up. Moving his legs over the side of the bed, Harry felt yet another surge of anger at Vernon. He hated not being able to move his legs. It made even the simplest thing like rolling over in bed an ordeal.

"Harry?"

Looking up, Harry saw Mrs. Weasley come in holding a tray. "You didn't come down for breakfast and I thought I'd make you up a little brunch platter." She set the tray on Harry's night table and moved the table in front of Harry. "Want to talk?"

Harry didn't reply as he grabbed his fork and started eating. It had been a while since he'd had a decent meal and he did love Mrs. Weasley's cooking. After a few moments he said, "I don't know how I'm supposed to deal with this. And not just losing the use of my legs, but… But also knowing that if it weren't for me Lupin would still be…"

"Harry, it's not your fault, dear," Molly said, sitting down on one of the chairs in the room. "Sirius knows that. You can't blame yourself." Taking Harry's hand, she added, "And even if you can't move your legs it doesn't mean you can't live a wonderful life."

"Mrs. Weasley, when was the last time you heard of a wizard being confined to a wheelchair?" Harry said, his temper rising. "I mean, you have no idea how hard it is getting dressed on my own. And Quidditch? I've never felt happier than when I'm up in the air, but now I'll never be able to be on a broom again!"

Molly wasn't sure of what to say so she just let Harry vent his frustrations. She understood how hard it was for the boy and she knew that if Harry could just move past his anger he'd be able to see that his life wasn't as bad as it could have been.

* * *

"There's no record of wizarding courts prosecuting a muggle for crimes against underage witches or wizards," Hermione told Casey later that afternoon as the two sat in the Hogwarts library and pouring over endless wizard court records.

Even after several hours, Casey was astounded not only by how quickly Hermione read through even the most complicated legal texts, but also how much information the 16-year-old witch was able to retain. Hermione's notes were also written quickly, and yet her handwriting was perfectly legible—something that Casey hadn't quite managed. Her handwriting occasionally got a tad sloppy after a while.

"You don't have to help, Hermione," Casey said, looking up from her own pile of books. "I'm sure you've got better things to do than studying wizarding law."

"But I want to help," Hermione insisted, as she made a few more notes in one of the spiral notebooks Casey had brought along. "It's unfair. After what Vernon Dursley did to Harry he should be in Azkaban, not some muggle prison."

"But there's no precedent," Casey said, feeling down as she leaned back in her chair. "And without a precedent set, it's hard to get the law changed." It was something that she'd come up against repeatedly working at SVU.

"I ran into the same problem when I started up S.P.E.W. my 4th year," Hermione said, looking at Casey as she closed yet another unhelpful book.

"S.P.E.W.?" Casey asked, confused. Now that was one acronym she'd never come across before.

"Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare," Hermione explained. "I started it to help get better rights for house elves but no one seemed particularly interested in the subject."

Casey raised her eyebrows in surprise. She knew some witches and wizards were against house-elf enslavement but to try and promote awareness of the issue was a new one in her book. She couldn't help commemorating Hermione on her efforts. "Fighting for house elf rights. I'm impressed."

Hermione looked slightly surprised, but pleased. "It's horrible how some house elves are treated. And they think they've got the best life in the world because they're brainwashed." Thinking for a moment about the current challenge, Hermione asked, "If you could combine muggle and wizard courts… what would you want to accomplish?"

Casey pondered the question, thinking on the issues she wanted to change. But perhaps that was where she was hitting a snag. She knew _what_ she wanted to change, but not exactly _how_ she wanted things, and what those changes might be, precisely. Thinking out loud, she said, "The problem is when muggles commit crimes against wizards. And you'd think the wizard courts would _want _to punish muggles just to prove we're better."

"Ah, Miss Granger… Miss Novak." Dumbledore said, brightly as he strode into the library, heading straight for the table the two ladies were working at. "I have cleaned up the Potions dungeons, Miss Novak, if you would like to decorate them to your liking." Casey stood and started to organize the piles of books and papers but Dumbledore pulled out his wand and with a wave everything was neatly stacked and categorized. "Go ahead down, Miss Novak. I'll send these things along to your rooms for later."

As Casey headed down to the dungeons, Hermione followed her. "Mind if I ask why you're following me?" Casey asked, looking at Hermione with just a touch of amusement. It wasn't that she didn't like kids, but having this studious teenager following her like an intern piqued her curiosity.

"Well… you're kind of a personal hero of mine," Hermione admitted, blushing a bit.

Casey stopped and turned to look at Hermione. After a moment, she said, "Really?"

"You're a pureblood witch who's worked in the muggle world for years!" Hermione said with reverence in her voice. "You're passionate, smart, and resourceful. You don't back down even when things aren't in your favor. You're everything I've always wanted to be ever since I found out I was a witch. I could never identify with muggle role models. I started reading about some famous witches and after reading about you, I figured you were someone I could aspire to be like."

Casey had never considered that she could be a personal hero to anyone. But it made her feel even better about leaving the muggle world to hear that Hermione idolized her. "Even though I'm a Slytherin?" Casey asked, wanting to see if this news came as a surprise.

"Not all Slytherins are evil," Hermione pointed out. "Just like not all Gryffindors are good," she added, thinking of Peter Pettigrew.

"Well, thank you for that," Casey replied, sincerely as she and Hermione continued to the dungeons.

* * *

Early on the morning of September the first, Sirius bounded into Harry's room in dog form, barking his head off. Harry woke with a start and grabbed his glasses off the night stand. "Sirius?" Had his godfather finally lost his mind?

Changing back to his human form, Sirius grinned. "Dumbledore told me I could stay with you at Hogwarts in dog form for assistance purposes."

"That's wonderful," Harry said, grinning. "I'd like that." He sat up and started moving his legs over the side of the bed. As much as he hated admitting it, he knew he would need some help getting around Hogwarts in his current condition.

"Let me help you, Harry," Sirius offered, gently, as he saw Harry getting ready to move over to the wheelchair.

Harry hesitated, but nodded anyway. Once he'd showered and gotten dressed, Sirius helped him pull on clothes and get reseated in the wheelchair. He knew that accepting help was something he'd have to get used to but it just made him feel uncomfortable for others to see him so vulnerable. Maybe it was a vanity thing, but Harry had something of a reputation for being somewhat independent and now his disability was forcing him to accept help with even the most simple of tasks.

But as he headed downstairs, Harry berated himself for his feelings of insecurity. Maybe disabled wizards weren't as common, but he knew that there were plenty of disabled muggles—some of whom were in a very similar position as Harry's—and they probably felt the same way he did.

But if others with disabilities had to accept help at the expense of their pride, then Harry supposed he had to do the same, whether he liked it or not.

* * *

The Potions classroom—which had formerly been covered in grit, grime, and likely a myriad of other substances which probably had toxic side effects from chronic exposure—was now scrubbed clean and brightly lit by the extra torches lining the walls.

Casey looked around and was relieved as she now found the room to be cheery and inviting rather than dank and gloomy.

Going through her office to the private quarters Dumbledore had arranged for her, Casey stood before the full length mirror and looked herself over.

Instead of the suit and high heels she'd worn as an ADA, she now wore dragon-hide boots, black jeans, a blue long-sleeved shirt and dark green robes.

It was strange to wear robes again. In New York, most witches and wizards opted to avoid robes so as to blend in even better with the muggles.

"Here we go," Casey said, leaving her quarters and heading up to the Great Hall to begin her new career as a teacher.

* * *

As Harry directed his wheelchair up the path to Hogwarts from the Hogsmeade train station that evening-Padfoot following close by—he was acutely aware of the stares from quite a few of the other students.

"Your accident and trial were in the _Daily Prophet_, Harry," Hermione explained, watching her best friend as Harry tried not to notice the looks from everyone else. "Not to mention in a couple muggle newspapers as well."

"Harry, are you alright?" Ron asked, noticing that Harry was being even more quiet than usual.

"No, Ron," Harry snapped, giving him a dark look. "I'm _not_ alright. I'm in a wheelchair because Dudley hit me with a car. I can't move my legs. How can you look at me and even _consider_ asking that question?"

Without another word, Harry sped up as he headed towards the castle, leaving Ron looking miserably at Hermione. "I didn't mean anything by it," he said, looking abashed.

"Don't worry about it, Ron," Hermione said, watching Harry and Padfoot dismally as they vanished into the crowd of students heading to Hogwarts. "Remember what Dumbledore told us. Harry's entire life has been changed. He's got to learn how to live with his disability."

"It's not fair, Hermione," Ron said, thinking of Harry. "How many times has Harry helped us? Saved us from one thing or another? But the one time he needed help and we weren't there."

"I know," Hermione replied, feeling frustrated and angry. "Lying in a hospital room unable to move or even breathe on his own… I can't imagine how Harry must have felt."

"Yeah," Ron said, vaguely. "I'm glad Sirius is with Harry anyway."

"I think Sirius is doing this out of guilt," Hermione said, thinking out loud. "He couldn't get custody of Harry after last year and he wasn't there when Harry was attacked by Vernon Dursley."

"Why do you reckon Harry never told us about his uncle?" Ron mused. "Why didn't he tell us he was being abused?"

"Harry… could have felt like he deserved it," Hermione replied, thinking of what Casey Novak had told her before when they'd spoken about Harry's situation. "Or maybe he was afraid because it would have meant a worse punishment. Some children… don't want to believe that someone that's supposed to take care of them is actually hurting them."

"Yeah," Ron muttered as an even worse thought occurred to him. "Now we know why Harry didn't raise more of a fuss when Umbridge was making him use that quill in detentions."

Hermione nodded, her mind buzzing with thoughts and worries about her friend. Feeling someone take her hand, she looked up at Ron who gave a comforting smile. Hermione smiled back and, hand in hand, they walked up the front steps of Hogwarts and into the Great Hall finding Harry sitting at the very front of the long Gryffindor table.

Harry looked cheered slightly and Ron didn't have to ask why. There was a shining mark on Harry's cheek, like someone had kissed him wearing lip gloss and looking around, Ron noticed Luna Lovegood smiling serenely at Harry. "Way to go, mate," Ron whispered to Harry. "Even if she is a bit nutty."

Harry didn't ask how Ron knew that Luna had kissed him, but dismissed the thought as Dumbledore stood to address the students.

Up at the staff table, Dumbledore's eye caught sight of Harry immediately and his insides clenched a bit. The poor boy looked trapped in the motorized wheelchair and even though Harry _looked_ fine, the headmaster was sure that it was a façade for his friends. "Welcome one and all to another year at Hogwarts," Dumbledore finally said, spreading his arms wide in a gesture of welcome. "Before I begin with our usual notices I would like to make a brief announcement."

Harry caught Dumbledore's eye and the teenager clenched his teeth. If the old man went into full disclosure about what happened in New York…

But to Harry's relief, the headmaster was brief on the subject. "This summer, Mr. Potter was the unfortunate victim of a hit and run while in the United States and has unfortunately lost the use of his legs. Even if you feel inclined, please do not pity Harry, but be mindful that there is a disabled student in this castle. To Slytherin House, even if you feel it would be most amusing to harm Mr. Potter, be warned that I have provided Harry with a 24 hour guard so it would be most unwise to make any attempts."

Sirius barked and Harry scratched him behind the ears, absently. Even those Slytherin students who were the offspring of Death Eaters wouldn't go so far as to hurt Harry if he was in a wheelchair, would they?

"Now," Dumbledore went on, addressing the Gryffindors at large. "Since Mr. Potter will be unable to captain the Gryffindor Quidditch team, I have elected a replacement. Someone who—I am certain—will be able to maintain the record of victory Gryffindor has held these past years: Miss Ginny Weasley."

Ron was floored. His _sister_? _Ginny_ was the new Gryffindor Quidditch captain? Why not Fred or George? And what about Angelina Johnson or Katie Bell? And since when did Ginny know anything about being a seeker?

Even Ginny herself looked shocked by Dumbledore's announcement but as she caught the eyes of the other members she vowed to be the best captain she could be.

"Also," Dumbledore said as he went on with the start of term announcements. "There are two staff changes this year. I am pleased to welcome back a former student of Hogwarts, Professor Casey Novak. She will be teaching the potions classes as Professor Snape will be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts this year."

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny exchanged looks. Hogwarts DADA teachers only lasted one year. Maybe they'd be lucky and Snape would snuff it before the year was out.

xxxx

Heading up to his dormitory after the feast, Harry noticed that there was a new full-length portrait hanging on the wall in Gryffindor Tower. After a moment of studying the painting, he realized that the tree on the painting was none other than the Whomping Willow. Sitting beneath the calm tree was a girl with red hair reading a book. "Um… Excuse me," Harry said to the portrait, as he realized that this must be the entrance to his personal suite. "But… how do I enter?"

When the girl stood, Harry was surprised when he saw that it was a teenage version of his mother. "Dumbledore left it to you to set the password to your private room," Lily replied, cheerfully.

Harry thought carefully. He wanted something personal but also something that only a few select people might know. Hearing Padfoot give a soft 'woof' beside him, Harry knew what his first password would be. "The new password is 'Moony'," he said, quietly but clearly, and watched the portrait open to reveal a small fire-lit sitting room. Maneuvering the wheelchair inside, Harry looked around. There was a table along one side next to a small set of shelves upon which sat all of Harry's textbooks as well as some additional research books and some muggle books for casual reading.

On the other side of the room, the fire in the fireplace danced merrily and an armchair and a couch sat nearby.

Across from the portrait entrance, there was a wooden door and as Harry went over and opened it, he found a brightly lit bedroom. Sitting on the queen-sized bed was none other than— "Dobby," Harry said, surprised to see the house elf.

"Professor Dumbledore asked Dobby to help Harry Potter," Dobby said, cheerfully. "If there is anything Harry Potter needs…"

"Thank you, Dobby," Harry replied. "Would you, uh…"

Harry wasn't quite sure how to ask the house elf to help him get ready for bed but Dobby seemed to know what Harry wanted and asked, "Does Harry Potter want a shower before he goes to bed?"

"Yeah," Harry said after a moment's hesitation. "Alright."

Sirius resumed his human form and looked at Harry. "Did you want me to come with you, Harry?"

"No," Harry said quickly. It was bad enough that Dobby would be helping him bathe but with Sirius in the bathroom as well, Harry would have felt even more uncomfortable.

While Harry took a shower, Sirius turned down Harry's bed and conjured a small cot in the corner of the room by the bed. He didn't want to leave Harry alone during the night and for the first night at least, Sirius decided to stay in human form.

Sitting on the cot, Sirius tried not to think about how helpless Harry was. He was the first wizard in history to survive Avada Kedavra and now Harry was the first wizard that Sirius knew of to be confined to a wheelchair.

xx

Almost an hour later, Harry came out of the private bathroom in his pajamas and directed the wheelchair towards the bed, stopping right next to it. "You're sleeping in here with me tonight?" Harry observed.

"If you don't mind," Sirius said, shrugging. "Just so you don't feel alone."

"I'd like that," Harry said, a small smile crossing his face as he eased himself onto the bed.

Sirius helped Harry get his legs under the blankets and ruffled his hair. "Good night, Harry."

"Sirius?" Harry asked before he lay down. "I… would you… tell me about Dad?"

Sirius let out a bark-like laugh and after a moment, Harry grinned as well. It was nice to hear his godfather laugh again. "You want a bedtime story, do you?" Sirius asked, sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at Harry who just smiled. "Okay. What would you like to know?"

Harry thought about it for a few seconds. There was so much he didn't know about his parents that it was hard to think of one thing at the moment "When did Dad know he loved Mum?"

Sirius let out a long sigh as he thought back. "Ahhh… That would have been our 4th year. James had been eyeing Lily for more than a year at that time and she'd yet to give him the time of day. Rumor had it that she was secretly dating Snape at the time."

"Snape?" Harry asked, in disbelief. His mother and Snape? But that didn't make any sense.

"From what I heard back then, they'd been friends since before Hogwarts," Sirius replied. "I think that might have actually been part of the hatred between your dad and Snape. They both wanted Lily and both were determined to smear the reputation of the other."

"But she chose Dad," Harry said, still a little curious. "Why?"

"I think because after 5th year—that memory of Snape's you saw in the Penseive—Lily started to see Snape's true colors. She realized that James was right," Sirius said, looking into Harry's eyes. "The incredible thing is that even after all this time, even with you looking so much like James… I think Snape's still haunted by Lily's eyes."

"You think…" Harry tried to remember those times he and Snape had actually made eye contact. There was always anger there, certainly. But there was pain as well. "You think that Snape still sees Mum in me?"

"I think so," Sirius said, sadly.

x

As Sirius lay on the cot that night, trying to get some sleep, he was beset by nightmares.

_Remus stood in the midst of the battle in the Department of Mysteries and fired a curse at Bellatrix Lestrange which was quickly deflected. As he was about to use another spell, Lucius Malfoy fired a stunning spell which hit Remus in the back, causing him to fall through the tattered old veil which stood in the middle of the room._

"_REMUS!" Sirius screamed, running for the veil. If Remus had only fallen through the veil maybe he could be saved._

_Just as Sirius was about to rush through the archway he stopped and whirled around when he heard Harry's voice. "Sirius! Help!" _

_Running away from the veil Sirius saw Bellatrix hit Harry with Avada Kedavra._

_Sirius fell to his knees next to his godson. "Harry...," he cried, as he held the teenager's lifeless body. "I'm sorry…"_

"Harry… no… no…"

Harry stirred as he heard his godfather's voice and finally woke up. "Sirius?" Harry asked, sleepily.

But Sirius continued talking in his sleep, unaware that Harry had said anything. "Sorry… James…"

Harry looked over at Sirius who was now tossing around. "Sirius, wake up. Sirius! Padfoot!"

At the sound of his nickname, Sirius bolted upright, looking around, wildly. "Harry!" he gasped, turning to his godson.

Harry threw back his blankets and moved so his legs dangled over the edge of the bed. "Sirius, are you okay?" he asked, concerned.

"Bad dream," Sirius said, vaguely. Looking apologetic, he added, "Sorry I woke you."

"It's okay, Sirius. I'm fine," Harry insisted. After a moment, he asked, "Are you sure you're okay, Sirius?"

"I'll be fine, Harry," Sirius said, giving the teenager a small smile. "You should get some sleep."

Harry nodded and after moving his legs back under the blankets and after watching Sirius lie down, Harry went back to sleep as well.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Casey had just written the day's potion recipe on the chalkboard when Harry came in with Padfoot the following morning. She'd passed on breakfast in the Great Hall, instead having one of the house elves bring a plate of scones and a tea tray to her office as she was writing out her lesson plans for her very first class. "Good morning, Harry," Casey said, cheerfully as she returned to her desk. She was pleased to note that Harry looked well this morning.

"Morning, Professor Novak," Harry replied with a grin as he directed his wheelchair to a seat at the very front, Sirius sitting next to him, preening a bit as he gave Casey his best 'dog-grin'. "Looking forward to your first day teaching?" Harry asked.

"I'm actually pretty nervous," Casey admitted. It was the strangest thing, really. She'd prosecuted some of the worst offenders imaginable and a room full of teenagers made her more nervous than any of them. "Anyone I should watch out for?" she asked, wondering how she might be received by the students.

"Draco Malfoy," Harry replied, pulling out parchment, a quill, and ink. "He's the only one I'd really worry about."

"I know the Malfoy name," Casey said, remembering dealing with Lucius Malfoy when she'd been at school. "Don't worry. I'll put him in his place. Oh, and I almost forgot." She went to a drawer and pulled out an old, worn copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_. "Professor McGonagall told me that you didn't have a textbook, so you can use this one till you get a new copy."

Harry took the book and started flipping through it, noticing that the book's previous owner had written a fair amount of notes on the pages. "Thanks."

"Good morning, Harry… Professor Novak," Hermione said as she sat next to Harry. Harry looked over at Hermione who gave him a sweet smile. "Sleep well, Harry?"

Harry nodded and turned away from Hermione as he felt a slight blush creep up his cheeks. Why was she making him edgy all of a sudden? Hermione was his best friend, for heaven's sake. Trying not to think of how close Hermione was as she sat next to him, Harry was relieved when other students started coming in.

"Well, well, well… The great Harry Potter is now a lowly cripple. I can't wait to tell my father about this," Draco said, cheerfully as he strutted into the room and started for the back of the class, slouching in his seat and giving his cohorts a smug look.

"Mr. Malfoy, you'll be seated up here," Casey said, arms crossed and her eyes narrowed as she pointed at a single table at the front of the room by the teacher's desk. "Now, Mr. Malfoy," she added when Draco showed signs of staying in the back. Once Malfoy had come up to the front and sat down, Casey looked over the 6th year class. "Snape's reign of this class is over," she stated, flatly. "And as such, I will not tolerate any misbehavior from _any_ house. If there is a squabble, I don't care who started it, all parties will be punished. You will turn your potions homework in on time. I don't care who your parents are, so don't even try to pull that crap with me. While you are in my class you adhere to my rules. Do I make myself clear?"

"And why do we have to listen to a mudblood who's lived with muggles all these years?" Draco said, loudly, grinning as the comment elicited laughter from the other Slytherins.

"50 Points from Slytherin for each person who laughed at Mr. Malfoy," Casey said and the laughter died instantly. Seeing that the students were now taking her a bit more seriously, she reiterated, "I'm not kidding. I won't tolerate any disrespect or misbehavior in my class. And Mr. Malfoy… two weeks detentions for calling me a mudblood."

When there were no more comments from anyone else, Casey said, "Now, let's begin with the lesson. You'll be working with whoever is sitting next to you to produce the potion written on the board. I'll tell you when to stop."

Hermione got up to grab the ingredients while Harry flipped through his textbook to find the procedure for the Draught of Living Death. Once all the ingredients were collected, Harry started preparing them to go into the cauldron. But while most of the instructions were clear, Harry noted that the book's previous owner had made some corrections to procedure and—figuring that the person had obviously known something he didn't—decided to follow the amended directions, much to Hermione's chagrin. However, noticing that the potion was progressing even better, Hermione had to admit that perhaps Harry was on to something.

Across the room, Malfoy was plotting how to best get back at Professor Novak and Potter. How dare they humiliate him like that! Well, he'd fix the both of them for good. A small explosion should work nicely and as Malfoy started working on his potion, he tried to figure out the best stage at which to create the diversion. He didn't want to accidentally kill himself in the process, after all.

Casey, meanwhile, was eyeing Draco Malfoy carefully. All the criminals she'd prosecuted had left her with a 6th sense for knowing when someone was up to something and right now Malfoy fit that bill. She knew that the kid wouldn't take his punishment lying down but when would the pureblood brat make his move? And what would the consequences—?

Without warning, Draco's station suddenly exploded in a geyser of liquid which sprayed everywhere. Students were screaming as they were splattered with potion and Harry quickly tried to navigate his wheelchair away, but the liquid on his robes was starting to smoke and his skin felt like he'd had been splattered with hot oil.

Then, to make matters worse, the vapors from the other partially brewed potions started combining and students started coughing from the fumes, a few even passing out before they could go for help.

Casey tried to pull out her wand to clean up the mess, but it was as if her fingers didn't want to work. Her hands were trembling and she slowly tried to get to her feet, even though the room suddenly started spinning. Her skin was burning and itching and she felt drowsy… Before she could call for help, Casey fell unconscious on the stone floor.

xxxxxx

Up in the Hogwarts kitchens, Dobby felt the magical warning system he'd set up for Harry Potter go off. Remembering Dumbledore's warning to allow Harry some space prior to the start of term, the house elf devised the system so that he would be instantly aware if Harry need assistance either for something simple, or if there was a sudden emergency.

Using the house elf's own version of apparition, Dobby found himself in the midst of the potions room and surveyed the unconscious students. The entire class looked to be affected by a heavy fog floating about the room and Dobby was thankful that he was miraculously unaffected.

"Dobby…" Harry Potter's voice was faint and he looked like he was barely hanging on to consciousness when Dobby hurried over. Harry felt himself fading and before he passed out, he said, "Help… Padfoot…"

Sirius, while certainly feeling the effects of the potions cloud even in dog form, was able to keep out of the more concentrated fumes and started whining when Harry slumped forward and fell out of the wheelchair and onto the floor. Grabbing the back of Harry's robes with his teeth, Sirius pulled Harry out of the room, pawing his godson until he heard the slightest of moans, before running up to the teacher's lounge where McGonagall was finishing her year's lesson plans. Transforming back to his human form, Sirius started talking quickly after a brief coughing fit. "There was a potions explosion! Harry and the rest of the class were involved. That house elf, Dobby is—"

"Go back to the Potions room, Mr. Black," McGonagall said, heading for the door, quickly. "I will find Madame Pomfrey and we'll take care of the others."

Sirius nodded and transformed back before he headed back down to the dungeons, the whole time praying that none of the students were fatally harmed.

xxxx

Once the students were in the Hospital Wing and properly treated, McGonagall knew that she had to inform the headmaster. After all, a situation of this magnitude could bring a mob of angry parents upon the school and that would end in nothing but disaster.

When Albus Dumbledore learned of what transpired in the 6th year potions class a short while later, there was no benevolent smile on the headmaster's face… no twinkle in the bright blue eyes. There was only cold fury etched into every line of the old man's face as he looked down at Draco Malfoy who was lying on a bed in the hospital wing. The teenager had regained consciousness only a few hours before and while Dumbledore had wanted to confront Malfoy straight away, Madame Pomfrey had insisted on a full physical examination first.

"I have never seen any student with less regard for human life," Dumbledore said with forced calm. "You nearly killed your fellow students, not to mention yourself. I have tried to help you learn respect for others, but I can see now that apparently that's the foolish dream of an old man." Dumbledore waited until Malfoy looked him in the eyes before going on. "Draco Malfoy, I hereby expel you from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Severus Snape, who had just entered the hospital wing to check on his own students said, swiftly, "Headmaster, don't you feel that that is a trifle harsh? After all, it seems that Mr. Malfoy simply added a few ingredients too soon. A simple mistake which anyone could have made."

Dumbledore turned to face Snape. Surely the man was not claiming that this had been some sort of mishap? "Do not lecture me on fairness, Severus Snape," Dumbledore said, quickly. "You have always favored your own students above all others. You encourage the Slytherins to be underhanded and tell them that they are superior to all others. Give me one reason why I should not dismiss you from the staff."

The students who had regained consciousness were now sitting up and staring at Snape and Dumbledore with rapt interest. Not only were they surprised at the headmaster's temper, but also that Snape seemed genuinely shocked at the headmaster's threat.

Attempting to change Dumbledore's mind, Snape said, "You need me to help protect Potter and—"

"You cared more for Lily Evans than you ever cared about her son," Dumbledore said, coldly. "I made that mistake before when I believed that Petunia Dursley would protect her own sister's child. Now Harry has been permanently injured due to my mistake. I will not be so foolish again. You do not care for Harry. That excuse holds no weight with me."

"You would turn me away?" Snape asked, desperately, thinking of all his years as a double agent. "Send me to Voldemort with all the information that I possess about your plans?"

"Memories can be modified," Dumbledore replied, evenly.

* * *

The following day, the news that Draco Malfoy had been expelled spread through the school like wildfire along with the rumor that Snape had been sacked. But while the first news was quickly confirmed by the other professors, information regarding Snape was far more carefully guarded.

In the Hospital wing, meanwhile, the 6th year Potions students were recovering from inhaling the toxic fumes from the explosion. Madame Pomfrey had insisted that everyone spend at least an entire week under her watch and care so she could be sure that there were no adverse side effects from the vapors.

Harry's bed in the Hospital Wing was next to Hermione's and after regaining consciousness, they told Ron—who had declined to continue with Potions that year—what had happened the brief time they were in class from Casey's speech to the explosion.

Ron looked relieved when Harry said that he and Hermione were both okay and quickly asked how they were doing. "It hurts to breathe a little, but Madame Pomfrey said that that should go away in another day or two," Harry said as he sat up a bit more as Sirius entered the hospital wing. "Sirius," Harry said, surprised to see his godfather in his human form. Remembering that Sirius had also inhaled the fumes, Harry asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright, Prongslet," Sirius assured him. "Casey's just fine as well. Though Madame Pomfrey said she's to avoid exertion as much as possible for the next few days," he added, sitting on the edge of Harry's bed.

"I, uh… wanted to thank you for saving my life, Sirius," Harry added, solemnly.

"Just fulfilling my godfatherly duties," Sirius assured him casually, not wanting to think about how close he'd come to losing his godson again.

"Heard anything about Snape?" Ron asked, eagerly. "Is he sacked or is Dumbledore keeping him around for some reason?"

"Dumbledore has suspended Snape until he makes his decision," Sirius replied, quietly. "But at the very least he won't be Head of Slytherin anymore. Casey will be taking up that post."

"The Slytherins won't be too happy about that," Hermione said before coughing lightly. "Malfoy called Professor Novak a… well, a mudblood. Never mind that she's really a pureblood."

"And you should have seen Dumbledore," Harry said, thinking of when he'd started coming to in the hospital wing. "He was livid."

"At Malfoy?" Ron said, incredulous.

"And Snape," Harry added. "Dumbledore said that Snape cared more about my mother than he ever cared about me… as a student, I mean."

Sirius let out a long sigh as he took that news in. He remembered how, after 5th year, Snape had begun stalking Lily. Even after she and James married, Lily was sometimes afraid to go out on errands alone because she felt like someone was watching her. What if Lily had survived that night? Would Snape have tried to take Lily and get rid of Harry? A horrible thought, but one never knew…

* * *

Snape angrily paced his quarters. Dumbledore had sealed Snape's rooms so that he couldn't leave and had forbidden any visitors except for a house elf that brought breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

How could Dumbledore keep him prisoner like this?

And when would the headmaster finally lay down his decision?

Despite what Dumbledore had said before in the Hospital Wing, Snape did consider Harry Potter's safety. Lily would never forgive him if something happened to Harry on Snape's watch and it was because of that alone that he had done everything conceivable to protect Harry for this long.

Snape flopped down into the armchair in his sitting room, feeling weary as his thoughts continued to plague him. Lily would never forgive him anyway, and he knew that. She hated him. Ever since that day after the Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL when he slipped and called her… "When I called Lily a mudblood," Snape said aloud to himself. "That was the day she started hating me."

He'd tried to talk to her afterwards, of course, but he could never find the courage to flat-out apologize. He had even kept an eye on her after she was married when she was out doing chores, in case any other Death Eaters tried to attack. Making sure she was safe and that Voldemort didn't…

Snape sighed, voicing his thoughts aloud, "Who am I trying to fool? I stalked her. I passed vital information along in the hopes that James Potter would be killed and I could have Lily all to myself. But she cared more about her son than her own life."

Standing and pacing the room again, Snape tried to make a case for himself but there was nothing he could think of that might favor him with Dumbledore.

It was hopeless to believe that the headmaster might keep him.

* * *

The clock on the wall in the Hospital wing turned to midnight and the light from the full moon coming in through the open curtains on the windows fell upon the recovering students who had long since fallen into restful slumber.

Except for two…

Harry was still awake, sitting up in his bed, several pillows behind him propping him up, his glasses pushed high on his nose as he looked through his copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ trying to figure out how Malfoy had botched the potion.

In the bed next to him, Hermione lay on her side, silently watching Harry as he read by the moonlight. There was something about Harry Potter—and it wasn't just his being The Boy Who Lived or The Chosen One. Something about Harry had captured her ever since 3rd year. Maybe it was how kind he could be even though he'd grown up in truly horrible conditions. Or perhaps it was his determination to always do the right thing, even if it meant breaking school rules. Or even Harry's desire to always save those nearest and dearest to him with no thought as to his own safety.

Whatever it was about Harry, Hermione knew deep down that 3rd year was when she'd stopped thinking of Harry as just her best friend and started imagining that someday they'd be something more. But did Harry think of her that way or did he still have eyes for Ginny or even Luna, who seemed to be taking a special interest in him lately?

"Hermione?"

Hermione was brought from her thoughts when she heard Harry say her name. Realizing that she'd been staring for a while, she blushed as she sat up a bit. "Oh, sorry," she muttered, a bit embarrassed. "I-I was just…"

"Watching me read?" Harry replied, closing the textbook and setting it on his night table before giving her a smile.

"Something like that," Hermione replied, smiling at Harry even though she felt her cheeks get redder.

"Well, I think I'm going to try and get some sleep," Harry said, removing his classes and pulling the pillows from behind him and setting them on the floor by his bed. "Good night, Hermione."

Hermione waited until Harry had fallen asleep and his breathing became even before saying, "Good night, Harry," and blowing him a kiss. Then, she lay back down herself and quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Harry awoke the next morning to find that Dumbledore was sitting on the edge of his bed looking older than the teenager had ever seen him. When the headmaster saw that Harry was fully awake, Dumbledore said, "I wonder if I might have a moment to talk to you, Harry. And… I wish to apologize for what I've done to you."

Harry sat up and pulled his glasses on as Dumbledore drew the curtains around the bed to give the two of them some privacy. "You left me with my aunt who hated me and my uncle who abused me since I was 5," Harry said, coolly. "I fractured my spine this summer because my cousin hit me with a car, basically paralyzing me and leaving me in a wheelchair because I can't move my legs. You can apologize all you want, sir, but that doesn't mean that I'm even going to consider forgiving you."

Dumbledore had expected to receive the cold shoulder and while he knew that there was nothing he could do to alter what had happened, he also realized that he had to take responsibility for his actions. "Harry, I have always believed that people would do the right thing when pressed. But in the case of you… perhaps I failed to take into account old pains and grudges. I believed that your aunt could look beyond her estrangement with Lily and take care of you. And I believed that Snape could take his affections for your mother into account in how he treated you."

"I think you trust too easily, sir," Harry said, simply.

Dumbledore gave a small smile, knowing that that was true. "I dare say that I do. But looking back on my mistakes, I find that I also do not look as deeply into a situation as I ought to. Certainly in the case of Sirius…"

"What are you going to do about Snape, sir?" Harry asked, curiously.

On any other day, Dumbledore would have admonished Harry for not saying 'Professor Snape'. But today that didn't seem to matter as much. "I haven't yet decided whether or not to dismiss Severus Snape, Harry," Dumbledore replied. "What do you think I should do?"

Harry's first inclination was to tell Dumbledore to fire Snape but there was something Harry needed to know before giving his opinion. Something that he'd wanted to know ever since first arriving at Hogwarts. "Why have you kept Snape all these years, sir?"

Dumbledore considered the question before replying, not only to give himself some time to think but also because he was rethinking his reasons. "Snape swore to me that he had genuine remorse for telling Voldemort about the prophesy and said that he would help me in any way if I could keep Lily safe," Dumbledore explained, finally.

Harry's mind was reeling as he listened. Snape was the one who passed the prophesy onto Voldemort? But Dumbledore was going on and Harry tried to listen and not to instantly jump to conclusions. "All Snape has done for me he has done because he was obsessed with your mother," the headmaster went on. "They knew each other from childhood and I believe at first they were good friends. Sadly, about 5th year, their friendship was irreparably broken. Lily never told me why."

Harry thought for a moment, taking his time as he thought. After a while, he looked Dumbledore in the eye. "I think… you should give Snape the sack," Harry said, finally.

* * *

Three days after the accident in Potions the entire castle gathered in the Entrance Hall as Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy stood with their trunks by the front doors. Since Malfoy's father was in Azkaban and his mother and aunt were in hiding, Snape had been the only person to take the teenager in while he was underage.

Dumbledore stood before the two Slytherins and said, "I am sorry that it had to come to this Snape… Mr. Malfoy."

"When my father finds out about this," Draco swore, his expression one of deepest loathing. "-You will pay dearly, old man."

"And what's Daddy going to do from his prison cell?" Fred Weasley said with a smirk, eliciting a ripple of laughter from some of the students.

"That will do, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall admonished. Although honestly, she had to admit that he had a valid point.

Without another word, Draco Malfoy grabbed his bag and left the castle, Snape following behind after charming the luggage to float along behind them.

* * *

There was an air of restlessness going through Slytherin House the night after Snape was sacked. The only other teacher in the castle who had been in Slytherin was Casey Novak and Dumbledore seemed very keen to post her as Head of House.

Seeing Draco Malfoy be expelled and Snape dismissed from the castle had told the other Slytherins one crucial thing: That Dumbledore was through playing around. A student committing gross misconduct _would_ be expelled. And if past misdeeds were taken into account, then any of them could be next.

All the Slytherins were uneasy as they imagined what would happen to them now and what Professor Novak would do in her new position as Head of Slytherin.

* * *

At the end of the week, Harry was more than ready to get out of the hospital wing. After the accident, he'd spent enough time in bed and he was tired of being on his back.

After Madame Pomfrey helped him get dressed that morning, Harry moved over into his now cleaned and decontaminated wheelchair, moving his legs into a more comfortable position before giving a thankful nod to the Hogwarts nurse and heading out into the hallway where Sirius, Hermione, Ron and Ginny were waiting for him.

Hermione flung herself at Harry, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tightly. "I was so worried!" she exclaimed. "I mean, I was released yesterday and when Madame Pomfrey said that you had to stay—well, you were still asleep—but I wondered—"

"You didn't have a collapsed lung over the summer, Hermione," Harry replied, hugging her back. "That's why Pomfrey wanted me to stay the extra day. She wanted to make sure I was breathing okay."

Hermione pulled back and after gazing into Harry's green eyes for a moment, she leaned forward again and kissed him on the lips. Smiling to herself when she felt Harry kiss her back.

Ginny and Ron gaped in surprise as Hermione and Harry made out right there in the hallway.

Sirius, on the other hand, grinned happily. He had known that Harry and Hermione belonged together. They just seemed to fit perfectly and seemed to remind him of James and Lily. "Way to go, Prongslet," Sirius, said, cheering Harry on.

Ron looked dumbfounded at Sirius. "You're not going to break them up?"

Sirius gestured at the couple who had disengaged the kiss and were now just staring at one another, holding hands. "How can you interrupt that?"

* * *

To put it plainly: Lord Voldemort was NOT HAPPY.

He looked down at his two servants and tried to maintain his temper. Best not to kill the bloody idiots until he had to. "I have lost my two spies within Hogwarts' walls," Voldemort said, coolly. "And Dumbledore knows of my plans. How do you suggest I proceed, Severus?"

"We can still penetrate Hogwarts and…" Snape trailed off when he saw the slit-like nostrils flare—always a bad sign.

"I meant," Voldemort said with forced calm. "How do I proceed with punishing you and Draco Malfoy?" On his knees, Draco looked up and felt his heart pounding in his chest as Voldemort withdrew his wand. "Tell me of the injuries Harry Potter incurred this summer."

"Potter suffered extensive nerve damage to his spinal cord," Snape said, calmly. "He cannot move his legs and is confined to a wheelchair. At the present moment, he is quite an easy target."

Voldemort paced for a moment as he thought. He needed to enter Hogwarts, defeat Potter and Dumbledore, and eliminate all the mudbloods, half-bloods, and muggle supporters. Wondering about Snape's successor, he asked, "Who has taken your place teaching Potions, Severus?"

"Cassandra Novak," Snape replied, simply. "An attempt on her life was why Draco was expelled."

Voldemort looked less angry and slightly more pleased at this news. Turning to the teenager who was still looking fearful, he asked, "How did you do try to eliminate her?"

"We were making Draught of Living Death," Malfoy replied, as calmly as he could even though his heart was pounding. "I dumped all my ingredients—unprepared—into the cauldron. It created a geyser. Then the potion vapors started to mix…"

"Had Madame Pomfrey not treated everyone in time, the entire class—Mr. Malfoy included—they would all have fallen into an irreversible coma," Snape explained.

"I will not punish the two of you," Voldemort said as his magical sensors started prickling. "I sense, Snape, that you have made an Unbreakable Vow with Draco's mother in regards to his safety. The two of you are bound to each other and will therefore be responsible for getting my Death Eaters into Hogwarts Castle."

Malfoy and Snape glanced at each other doubtfully. With the both of them banned from the grounds, the task would be nearly impossible.

"If you fail," Voldemort said, silkily. "You will beg me to kill you when I have finished with you."

* * *

At dinner that evening in the Great Hall, Casey stood up from her seat at the staff table and looked at the Slytherin table. "Since I am now your new Head of House, I will be very frank. I will not tolerate any disrespect towards another student or to any other professors. Furthermore, with the help of Professor Flitwick, a jinx has been placed on the word 'mudblood'. Any student who uses the name will automatically lose their house 20 points. And this applies to ALL students," she warned, looking at the hall at large. "Not just the Slytherins."

Harry exchanged looks with his friends. It certainly seemed that Casey was taking her post seriously and laying down the law straight off the bat. "How do you think the Slytherins are going to take this?" Ginny asked, glancing over at the Slytherin table.

"I don't know," Hermione admitted as she looked as well. "But Malfoy was definitely a ringleader. With him gone I wonder who's going to rally them."

"I'm just glad Malfoy didn't do anything worse to you, Harry," said Neville Longbottom who had been listening to the conversation. "You're already in a wheelchair… Imagine if Malfoy had blown up the classroom or something."

"Neville's got a point," Ginny said, flashing the shy Gryffindor a flirtatious smile. "You could have hurt your back even worse or…"

"Or he could have killed me," Harry finished, saying aloud what he knew was on everyone else's mind. "Not to mention he could have murdered a teacher."

"I would like your attention, please," Dumbledore said, loudly and clearly and all whisperings ceased as the students turned their attention to the Hogwarts headmaster. "As you are all well aware we are presently without a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Regretfully, I haven't yet found a suitable replacement for Professor Snape, so until further notice you will have that space of time as a free period. However…" Here Dumbledore met Harry's eyes. The headmaster remembered how Harry had organized 'Dumbledore's Army' the previous year and decided that perhaps this was a perfect opportunity for the disabled student to reassert himself as a warrior for the light. "If Mr. Harry Potter will consent, I will arrange for him to lead a defense class in the evenings."

Harry was stunned at the news. Dumbledore was essentially making him a teacher… even though Harry was disabled? "I… Yes, sir," Harry said, looking at Dumbledore. "Um… I guess…"

Dumbledore laughed, delighted that he'd caught Harry off guard. "I will make a schedule that should work for everyone and pass it on to you, Mr. Potter."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

* * *

_Manhattan, New York_

_SVU Precinct_

No one was quite sure how an owl had managed to get into the building but Fin was 99% sure of who had sent it. The owl had apparently come in an open window and had taken up residence on top of a filing cabinet after dropping a parchment letter on Fin's desk.

While Stabler, Benson, and Munch spent close to an hour trying to shoo the damn bird outside, Fin carefully slipped the parchment envelope the owl had dropped into his pocket and headed to the locker room to read the enclosed letter from Casey Novak.

'_Hey, Fin_

_I've included a general update letter for the others but since you know my little secret I'll give you the full scoop. I survived a potions explosion during my first class caused by a former student. And before you even start worrying about me, I'm fine, don't worry. Spent some time in the medical wing of the school, but I got back to work last week._

_Anyway, after the explosion I mentioned, the former Potions teacher—Snape—was fired and the student who caused the incident was expelled. After that, I was made Head of House which is even more challenging than you can imagine._

_I miss SVU, believe it or not. Teaching is much more challenging than prosecuting rapists. Every day seems to be filled with new drama and it's a bit tiring. _

_Harry Potter is doing well. He's kind of adjusting to being in a wheelchair, but he still had good days and bad ones. I can't imagine what it's like for Harry, but I don't think I've ever encountered such a resilient teenager. Since Hogwarts is currently without a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Harry's leading classes in the evenings and the students are learning a lot—disarming, stunning, and maybe even Patronus charms later. I keep telling him that he would make an excellent professor later on—officially, I mean._

_I'll try and drop in around Christmas if you guys want to see me. The winter holidays generally go from December 18__th__ to the 7__th__ of January._

_Take care and stay out of trouble. _

_Casey Novak, Professor of Potions'_

Fin smirked as he folded up the letter. It sounded like the former ADA had her hands full with teaching, but if anyone could teach young witches and wizards and survive, Casey Novak could. After all, the woman was far tougher than he'd thought when she first started.

At first, it had seemed unlikely that Casey would last long in Special Victims. She didn't seem to understand that things were far more different than in homicide or other departments. But the more cases Case tried, the more she learned, and the more she found her place with the team.

"Hey, I thought you were going to help us catch that damn owl?" Elliot Stabler said, coming into the locker room. Spotting the envelope, he asked, "Who's the letter from?"

"Novak. She mailed it out last week," Fin replied as he handed over the letter written on notebook paper and when Stabler turned away, Fin slipped the other letter into his pocket.

"Sounds like Casey's doing okay," Stabler said, finishing the short note. "When did this come in?"

Fin shrugged. "Yesterday. I didn't get a chance to open it last night, so I brought it in." _'Actually, it was delivered by that owl you scared off in the squad rom.'_ "I think I'm heading out for the day. See ya, Elliot."

"Later, Fin," Stabler said, watching the detective leave the room. There was something going on and it had something to do with the letter from Novak…

* * *

_Hogwarts Castle_

On an unseasonably warm Saturday morning, Harry sat near the entrance to the Quidditch pitch watching as Ginny directed the students who had decided to try out for the Gryffindor team. There were three groups of potential players, grouped according to which position they were trying out for: keepers, beaters, and chasers.

First the keepers took off and one at a time they took turns defending the three hoops that stood at one end of the pitch.

Then one of the keepers—it looked like Ron—stayed up while the potential chasers tried to score goals.

Harry stared longingly at the sky and the students flying around overhead. How he dreamed of being back in the air, soaring and diving…

Looking at the wheelchair he sat in, Harry felt the weight of his situation start to press in on him. It had been building for a while—little things at first. Things he forgot he couldn't do anymore, or when he tried to move his lower body, only to remember that he couldn't.

He'd never again be able to walk down to the pitch on Saturday mornings for games, broom over his shoulder, eager for a glorious match against Slytherin, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw.

He'd never be able to stroll hand in hand with Hermione by the lake as the two talked about their lives, dreams, and whatever else crossed their minds.

And very worst of all, Harry thought, he'd never feel the wind ruffle his hair as he dove for the golden snitch.

He'd forever be stuck in this wheelchair because he couldn't move his legs… Grounded—almost literally.

And as Harry watched Ginny lead the selected team into a practice, he suddenly felt very depressed. Leaving the pitch, he started towards the castle. But as low as he felt, Harry would not think about ending his life. As much as it hurt not being ably to fly, Harry imagined how his death would affect his friends and—more importantly—his godfather. Harry wouldn't do that to them, no matter how empty his life felt just now.

xxxxxxxx

Hermione hadn't seen Harry since before breakfast and that worried her. He'd been moody the past few weeks, but he'd always shown up at meals, even if he did only poke glumly at his plate with his fork.

After a while, Hermione decided to check the usual places, but Harry wasn't in his suite and he wasn't with Hagrid or Luna. Ginny and Ron claimed that they hadn't seen Harry at Quidditch tryouts and with that news, Hermione's worry increased.

Dashing through the castle, she checked every place she could think of. There was no one in the Room of Requirement and Professor Novak hadn't seen Harry either. There was no sign of him in the library, or in any of the bathrooms and Dobby assured her that Harry wasn't in immediate danger.

It wasn't until she tried the Astronomy Tower that Hermione finally saw Harry sitting near one of the open windows staring out onto the Hogwarts grounds. "I've been looking all over for you, Harry," Hermione said, calmly, as stepped into the room. "You weren't at lunch… I was worried."

"I went to watch the Quidditch tryouts," Harry said, quietly, his back to her. "I saw everyone flying around and… I realized that that will never be me again. I'm never going to walk again because of my bastard of an uncle. Because of my cousin I can't move my legs. I can't fly anymore. What do I have left, Hermione?" Turning the wheelchair so he was looking at her, Harry said, "Tell me that."

Hermione cautiously stepped closer, keeping her eyes on Harry the whole time. She didn't know what brought Harry up to the highest tower of the castle, but the potential reasons she thought of worried her deeply. "Harry, flying… Quidditch… it's not all you have. And what you've lost is not as important as what you've gained. You have people who care about you. You've gained your freedom from the Dursleys. I know this isn't how you would have wanted—"

"Freedom?" Harry said, with a derisive snort. "I'm stuck in a bloody wheelchair, Hermione! I can't move my legs! I can't walk! I can barely get in a bath or get dressed by myself! You call _this_ freedom?"

"There's nothing wrong with needing help, Harry," Hermione said, taking a few more steps towards Harry. "I know this has been hard for you, but it's been hard on Ron and me as well." Harry looked doubtful at that but Hermione pressed on. "You've always been there and you've saved us so many times but the one time you needed to be saved… we weren't there. I wish you had told us what was going on with your uncle, Harry," Hermione said as she walked up to the window and sat on the sill facing Harry.

"Told you what?" Harry said, quietly, as he looked away. "That Vernon liked to beat me when he had bad days at work? That he'd lock me in my cupboard if I brought home a grade that was better than Dudley's? That Dudley used me as a punching bag on a regular basis?" He turned to look Hermione in the eye. "You and Ron want to hear about all of that? About…" With a wry laugh he said, "About how the famed 'Boy Who Lived' was afraid to go home every summer in case the next beating was fatal?"

"Yes," Hermione said, firmly, even though she felt sick at the idea of how much abuse Harry had put up with over the years. "We're your friends and we care about you, Harry. Me, Ron, Ginny, Luna, Sirius-we're all here for you. Just… please let us in." She took Harry's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "We're not going anywhere, Harry. No matter how horrible your past is."

"Thanks, 'Mione," Harry replied, with a faint smile. "I'm sorry I scared you."

Hermione stood and waited for Harry to turn away from the window before she replied. "Just don't do that again, Harry."

"I'll try," Harry promised. But when he went back to his suite, he couldn't help the tears streaming down his face.

* * *

Halloween marked the first Hogsmeade visit for the students and Harry and Hermione's first official date as a couple.

But what should have been a pleasant and fun trip to the local village was actually something far more somber. Hermione had finally talked Harry into telling her everything about his abusive past, even though Harry had been adamant that she didn't want to know.

Sitting in a quiet corner of the Three Broomsticks, Harry held a bottle of butterbeer in his hands as he sat opposite his girlfriend. After a long silence between the two, Harry finally started to talk. "I was about 5 the first time Vernon hit me," he said, looking at his bottle. "I was setting the table and I put the forks on the wrong side. He grabbed me roughly by the arm and threw me to the ground. When I started to get up, Vernon punched me in the jaw. The next day at school, when my teachers asked about the bruises, I told them that my cousin and I had been wrestling and he hit me by accident."

Hermione just listened as Harry talked, occasionally giving encouragement when he seemed to be unable to describe a particularly painful moment. Harry described broken bones, bruises, cuts, interviews with police and social services… even spending a month in the hospital at age 9 when a fall down the stairs—caused by Dudley—had resulted in internal injuries and fractures necessitating surgery.

But as Hermione heard story after story, she found herself asking the same question over and over: How could Harry's family hurt him like this? Harry had been innocent, so how could his uncle have been so cruel?

"Harry…" Hermione reached across the table and took her boyfriend's hand. "Tell me about that night in New York. What happened to you?"

Harry sighed deeply. The memories still felt raw and he didn't want to remember what had happened that night. But thinking of what all else he'd told Hermione, Harry knew that he had to go over the night's events one more time. "I just wanted a few moments to think. About Cedric and Lupin. I hadn't been sleeping well and I just wanted a walk to clear my head. We…" Harry took a breath to calm down as he felt himself getting worked up. "We weren't due at the restaurant for dinner for more than two hours. I told Vernon I just wanted to take a short walk around the city… I'd be back in an hour or so. And then he grabbed me by the upper arm."

_Vernon Dursley pulled his nephew out of the hotel lobby and out onto the street, finally shoving the boy into a dark alley nearby. "You're not going for a 'walk', you little freak!" he shouted, drunkenly. "You're going to your kind, aren't you?" Grabbing Harry by the back of the neck and throwing him against the wall, Vernon balled up his fist and threw a punch into Harry's side as the teenager started to straighten up, making him double over again._

"After he punched me a second time, he threw me to the ground after breaking my thumb and fingers," Harry said, still not meeting Hermione's eyes. "Then he started kicking me in the legs, side, and back. I managed to get to my feet and I ran. I wasn't looking, I just wanted away from him. Next thing I knew, I was flying across the hood of Vernon's car."

_Lying on the road, Harry's entire body was wracked with pain… he couldn't move and there was an especially sharp pain when he tried to breathe. Through the haze of his agony, Harry heard his aunt and uncle screaming._

"_What the bloody Hell are you going to do now, Vernon?" Petunia was shouting, panic thick in her voice. _

"_We have to dump him off somewhere," Vernon said, picking Harry up and throwing him haphazardly in the backseat of the car._

"_I saw a police department a little down that way," Petunia said, pointing. "We'll drive past and drop him off there."_

_The Dursleys got into the car, Dudley behind the wheel and taking directions from his mother. Taking a sharp turn, he narrowly missed a cop coming out of the precinct as his father threw Harry out of the back seat._

"I started to wake up briefly in the emergency room," Harry went on, remembering the flutter of activity in the room as the doctors fought to save his life. "I had a… a tube down my throat because I couldn't breathe."

"You were intubated?" Hermione asked, looking shocked.

Harry finally looked at Hermione. "Yeah. And… I-I think I was actually dead for a moment, 'Mione."

Hermione's jaw dropped. "What?" She knew the accident had been bad, but she hadn't known it was _that_ serious.

"My heart stopped a moment or two later" Harry continued. "The muggle doctors brought me back, but…"

Hermione squeezed Harry's hand, tears in her eyes. "You are… the luckiest person I know, Harry. You could have died, but you're still here."

"Sometimes I can't believe I'm still here," Harry said, giving Hermione's hand a return squeeze. "Ever since Vernon started beating me… there were times I thought he'd kill me."

"You're still here, Harry," Hermione repeated as much for Harry as for herself. "Just remember that."

* * *

Most people felt the loss of loved ones around Christmas but for Sirius, it was Halloween that always brought up the sad and painful memories.

There were good memories, certainly, but more and more these days, it was the harder times that affixed themselves in Sirius's mind.

Halloween, 15 years ago, was when he'd lost his best friend in the whole world. It was when life headed straight into a downwards spiral, starting with the deaths of James and Lily and ending with Hagrid taking Harry off to a cruel life with the Dursleys.

And then early this summer Remus had been callously taken away.

Now Harry was all Sirius had left-the last reminder of wonderful times long gone.

Looking at the clock on the wall in Harry's suite, Sirius noticed that it was getting to be dinnertime. Harry and Hermione should have been back from Hogsmeade by now he hadn't heard any thing from them.

Down in the Great Hall, Sirius scanned the Gryffindor table for his godson or Hermione but didn't see either the young couple. Hurrying up to Ron, Sirius asked, frantically, "Have you seen Harry?"

Ron looked at Sirius and shook his head before checking his watch. "They left here early but I'd think that they should be back here by now." Exchanging a look with Sirius and recognizing the intense worry in the older man's face, Ron stood quickly, leaving his plate of food untouched. Ginny stood up as well and followed her brother out of the hall and out onto the grounds.

Sirius looked at Harry's friends, trying to think clearly. "Ron, you check with Hagrid. Ginny… uh…"

"I'll check the Quidditch Pitch," Ginny said, hurrying off, quickly

Ron looked at Sirius and asked, "What about you?"

"I'm hoping Harry and Ginny are still in Hogsmeade," Sirius said before changing into Padfoot and running off as fast as he could towards the village.

Coming to the edge of the village, Sirius resumed his human form and started hurrying along the street, looking for Harry.

"Sirius?"

Whirling around, Sirius saw Hermione coming out of the Three Broomsticks with Harry. "You… weren't at dinner," Sirius said, breathing a sigh of relief and trying not to look like he was about to tear his hair out with worry.

"'Mione and I were talking and I guess we lost track of time," Harry said, looking rueful. "I didn't mean to worry you, Sirius."

Sirius put a hand on Harry's shoulder, trying not to go on about how worried he'd been. "I don't want to lose you, Prongslet."

Looking up at his godfather, a bit puzzled by the comment, Harry said, "You're not going to lose me, Sirius."

"I almost lost you this summer," Sirius said, kneeling down so as to better face Harry. "You're all I have left of James, Harry. You mean the world to me."

Harry could see that his godfather had been desperately worried and promptly hugged his godfather. "I love you, Sirius."

Sirius hugged him back. "I love you, too, Prongslet." Standing up, he smiled. "Now let's go enjoy that Halloween feast, eh?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I hope Harry's alright," Ginny said as she stood on the front steps of Hogwarts with Ron, both of them looking out on the grounds for any sign of their friends.

"Yeah," Ron said, vaguely. A thought had been occurring to him lately and after a moment, he asked, "Ginny… you ever think that sometimes we take Harry for granted?"

"You mean like how he's saved you, me, Hermione, Sirius, Luna, Neville—the entire wizarding world, really—repeatedly?" Ginny asked, looking up at her older brother. "And we just always seem to expect it?"

"Exactly," Ron said, looking over the grounds for Harry, Hermione or Sirius. "And the fact that we always figure Harry can get himself out of whatever mess he's in. How did I not know my best friend was in so much trouble?"

"Because he didn't tell us," Ginny replied, simply. "Because Harry has never had someone who really cared about his problems. He's used to doing everything alone and so he thought he could handle this by himself, too."

"But he's not alone," Ron protested. "He's got us."

"He has us now," Ginny said, trying to be patient. "But when he was younger he was alone. He didn't have friends he could turn to and his godfather was still locked up in Azkaban. We just have to be patient, Ron. Harry will open up to us eventually and—Look!"

Ginny pointed at the path heading towards Hogsmeade and the three figures coming into view. Sirius was in the lead followed by Harry and Hermione. Once in earshot, Ron said, "We were worried, mate. You okay?"

"Just fine, Ron," Harry replied, levitating his wheelchair up the stairs. "Hermione and I were talking and we lost track of time."

Ron started to ask what they'd been talking about but Hermione shot him a look that said '_We'll_ talk later'. Knowing when to shut up, Ron followed the others inside and to the Great Hall for a quick dinner before going back up to the Gryffindor Common Room.

xxx

Late that night, after Harry was asleep, Hermione told Ron, Ginny, and Sirius about her conversation with Harry earlier that day. It had been hard relating Harry's abuse history, and Ron and Ginny's constant interruptions did nothing to help.

Ginny was shocked that Harry had been so badly mistreated and Ron was angry about the actions of Harry's relatives. "The Dursleys give muggles a bad reputation," Ron muttered.

"I can honestly say I wouldn't mind handing all three of them to Voldemort," Sirius said, darkly.

"But there's nothing we can do about the Dursleys now," Hermione said, pointedly. "What we need to do is find a way to help Harry. Even if he thinks he doesn't need help. Agreed?"

"Agreed," everyone said in unison.

"So what should we do to help Harry?" Ginny asked, studying Hermione.

"I think the first step is getting Harry more comfortable with needing help," Hermione replied. "He's been trying to handle his own situations for so long, I wonder if he even knows how to ask."

"The bloke's in a wheelchair, Hermione," Ron said. "Harry can't even get dressed on his own. That's not exactly stuff we know how to help with."

"And admittedly, Harry's in a unique situation," Sirius said. "I've done research these past few days and there're no records of a witch or wizard with a permanent spinal injury."

"Sirius, let Hermione handle research, okay?" Ron said, smirking. He knew that—while Sirius had probably done a decent job of looking things up—no one could compare with Hermione Granger in terms of speed and quantity when it came to amassing information. "So… any other ideas?"

* * *

The morning of the first Quidditch match of the season, Harry awoke to find Sirius sitting on the camp bed in the corner, looking through Harry's photo album. There were tears in the older man's eyes and every now and then he sniffed a bit.

"Thinking of Dad or Lupin?" Harry asked, as he sat up in bed and put on his glasses.

Sirius sighed as he closed the album and set it aside. "Remus. After your 3rd year, the two of us felt a bit better knowing that we weren't alone anymore. Moony… Well, he was never really one for the ladies, you understand. He even fancied me for the longest time." Sirius remembered the hurt look on the werewolf's face when he realized that Sirius was straight.

"You still have me, Sirius," Harry said, moving his legs over the edge of the bed. "I don't know what I would have done without you the past few years."

Sirius sat next to Harry and put a fatherly arm around Harry. "Yeah, I still have you. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you too. So… you want to go to the match today?"

"Not really," Harry said. Feeling embarrassed, he looked at his godfather and asked, "Um, Sirius could you… uh… Help me to the bathroom?"

"No problem," Sirius assured him as he nodded and stood, picking Harry up and carrying him into the bathroom before helping him get undressed.

Once Harry was in his bath, Sirius went back into the suite and made the bed and straightened up the room. It was a combination of being busy to try and keep his mind of some things and also giving Harry some privacy.

"Harry? Sirius?" Hermione asked, opening the bedroom and poking her head in, ready to look away quickly if Harry was in the midst of dressing or undressing. "Sirius, can I talk to you and Harry?"

"Harry's taking a bath," Sirius said, nodding towards the bathroom door which was slightly ajar. "What did you need?"

"I've been doing some reading," Hermione said, entering the room and pulling a notebook out of her bag where she'd jotted down her notes. "I've been researching all week about spinal injuries in wizards and I wanted to tell you what I found."

"What did you find?" Sirius asked, curious. He hadn't found much when he'd looked through the library, but apparently he just hadn't looked in the right places.

Hermione glanced at the bathroom door before handing over the notebook which she'd flipped open to a particular page. She'd wanted to give the news to Harry and Sirius at the same time, but decided that maybe it would be better if both she and Sirius relayed the information. "I found out why the healers couldn't fix the injuries to Harry's spine. Apparently, if a spinal injury is healed by magic first, then the person in question will be able to recover fully."

"But Harry was in the muggle hospital first…" Sirius said, trying to understand what the Gryffindor was saying.

"There's a only about a 12 hour window," Hermione explained. "After that, the nerves are impossible to repair magically. _That's_ why Harry still can't move his legs."

"So now we know why," Sirius said, looking at the notes before looking at Hermione again. "Any idea about what we do now?"

Hermione didn't know what to say. "I don't know that there is anything we can do," she said, honestly. "It's too late to use magic to heal Harry's injuries and there's nothing muggle medicine can do."

Hearing Harry call his name, Sirius headed into the bathroom and a while later, came back out with Harry and got the teenager settled in the wheelchair. Looking from Hermione to Harry, Sirius finally said, "We need to talk, Harry."

Harry's gaze went from his godfather to his girlfriend and seeing that neither of them were smiling, he knew it wasn't good news. "What's going on?" he finally asked.

And so Hermione went over everything, rather than the abbreviated summary she'd given Sirius.

Although Harry hadn't seemed surprised by the news, he seemed to become even more depressed than before. He'd figured a while ago that the nerve damage in his spine wouldn't be reversible with magic. The healers had told him as much when he'd still been in the hospital. But knowing that he might still be able to walk had he gone to a wizarding hospital first—Harry found that that was worse than when he'd first got the news right after the accident.

"I'm so sorry, Harry," Hermione said, sincerely as she set her notebook aside. "I wish I had better news."

"It doesn't matter," Harry said with would-be casualness. "It's done. I just… have to live with it, right?"

But neither Hermione nor Sirius were fooled by Harry's flippant attitude and both looked at him with concern. "Harry, if you want to talk about this—" Sirius began.

But Harry cut him off as he headed for the door to the suite. "I don't. I just… I want to be alone for a bit, okay?"

"Alright," Hermione acquiesced, still looking worried.

* * *

Severus Snape angrily paced the dusty floor of his old house in Spinner's End where he and Draco Malfoy had been forced to locate. His anger wasn't just due to being sacked from Hogwarts, but that he was also likely cut off from the Order of the Phoenix and therefore wouldn't be able to go to them for protection from Voldemort. Therefore, Snape had no choice but to get himself out of this mess. He _had_ to come up with a plan, if only to save Draco's life.

"Why don't we just use my idea?" Draco grumbled as he sat on the couch looking at Snape. He could tell that his former Potions professor was drawing a blank on ways to get Voldemort inside Hogwarts and Draco was wondering why Snape hadn't asked him to come up with something.

"You mean you actually had a plan to kill Dumbledore and get the death eaters inside Hogwarts?" Snape said, derisively. Surely Draco hadn't actually planned something out ahead of time. That would be exceedingly uncharacteristic.

"Not Dumbledore," Draco said, dodging the question. It was the one part of his mission that he'd balked at. Taking over Hogwarts had been one thing, but Draco had never felt like he had the heart for cold-blooded murder, no matter how much he may dislike the person. "But in the Room of Requirement there's the vanishing cabinet Montague was found in last term. If that one could be fixed, you can get in through the matching cabinet in Borgin and Burkes."

Snape stopped pacing and stared at the teenager in amazement. The little prick actually had a brilliant idea. "That's… a well thought out idea, Mr. Malfoy," Snape replied. "And it might actually work."

"Next time I tell you a good idea," Draco said, glaring at his former professor. "—try not to look so bloody surprised. Now, we need to send an owl to some of the Slytherins."

Snape nodded and while Draco started thinking about how to carefully code the letter so as to not alert anyone in Hogwarts, the older man worked on trying to compose his own letter to warn Dumbledore. The headmaster might not believe him, but Snape had to try nonetheless.


	6. Chapter 6

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I have to issue a warning with this chapter since I added even more detail to my food scenes later in this chapter. Please, do not drool on your computer's keyboard.

Chapter 6

* * *

_Manhattan, New York_

There was something out of the ordinary about the way that Casey Novak had left New York and it was bugging Elliot Stabler that he couldn't figure out exactly what it was. He'd never known the ADA be impulsive before now and more than that—who gave up a promising legal career to go into teaching? It didn't make any sense.

But Stabler wasn't the only one who knew something was up. Fin knew something about Casey as well, but he sure as Hell wasn't spilling the beans.

That left only one other person in whom the former ADA would confide something personal which was why Stabler was standing in the living room of Mary Clark late one Sunday evening. "So tell me, Elliot, what brings you to see me?" Mary asked as she fixed coffee for the two of them. Honestly, she'd thought that someone from SVU would have come to see her long before now.

"You know something about why Novak left," Stabler said, succinctly. He wasn't in the mood for mincing words or dancing around the subject and decided to just be straightforward.

"I know exactly why Casey left," Mary said, smirking. When Elliot seemed puzzled, she asked, "Why do you want to know?"

"Because… I know Casey Novak. She's never struck me as the kind to just up and leave which means that either she'd been planning this for a while or this was something really, really important to her," Stabler explained. "You're her confidant. She probably told you what she was planning or asked you for advice." Getting down to brass tacks, he asked, "What's Casey's big secret?"

Mary handed the SVU detective a mug of coffee and sat down in one of the living room chairs before gesturing to the detective to do the same. "It's not that I don't want to tell you Casey's secret. It's just that it's incredibly need-to-know. If I tell you… you're sworn to absolute secrecy. You can't tell anyone."

Stabler looked confused about that, but he nodded. "I understand."

Mary sighed and—rather than easing into the subject—said, "Casey is a witch."

"A what?" Stabler said, blinking. No, he had to have heard that wrong. "She's… Are you serious?" he asked, wondering if this was some sort of joke.

"Completely serious," Mary replied, almost amused at the detective's expression which kept going between disbelief and confusion.

"And…" Stabler tried to think of a tactful way of asking the question on his mind. "…are you…?"

Mary laughed. "No, I'm not a witch. My son's a wizard, so that's how I know about the magic stuff…"

Stabler still looked disbelieving but after a moment he asked, "This is real?"

"Sure as I'm sitting here," Mary replied. "It's complicated, though. The magical world has its own laws and government. That's partly why Casey was so affected by Harry Potter's case. It was a personal thing for her."

"Wow," was all Stabler could say to that.

xxxxxxxxx

Seeing Stabler's face the following day at the precinct, Fin noticed the familiar perplexed look the he'd worn for a while after finding out about Novak. Walking up to the other SVU detective, Fin said, quietly, "Found out, did you?"

Stabler decided to bypass the first 10 questions he had and nodded as he asked, "How did you, uh… I mean this is…?"

Fin chuckled softly, knowing that Stabler was wondering if how he was feeling was normal after hearing the news that magic was real. "I pretty much reacted like you. It's…"

"Not the kind of secret I'd expect from Casey," Stabler said, looking at Munch and Olivia who had just come in. Thinking of what Mary had told him the previous night, he questioned telling the other two detectives. "I know that, uh…we were sworn to secrecy, but…"

"You think we should tell them?" Fin asked, looking over at his partner and Stabler's. Olivia might be a bit of a skeptic, but Munch lived for conspiracy theories and would probably be fascinated by the whole magic concept.

"Munch is a pretty private guy. And Olivia can keep a secret," Stabler said. Seeing the other detective's doubtful look, he asked, "You think we should? I mean if Casey found out…"

"She'd probably turn us into something nasty," Fin finished, nodding. "Still, if we knew then she wouldn't have to code her letters."

"So what do you think?" Stabler asked, glancing at the other two detectives.

"Hell, why not?" Fin said, shrugging. "Come on."

As Stabler and Fin went to talk to their partners, Stabler paused a moment as he asked, "What if they think we're insane?"

* * *

_Hogwarts Castle_

It was after 1 in the morning and Harry was held tight in the grips of his nightmares: reliving the abuse from the Dursleys, seeing Cedric's murder, seeing Lupin fall through the archway in the Department of Mysteries… and the latest horrific vision—feeling the car driven by Dudley slam into his body.

Sirius had woken when he heard his godson's frantic cries in his sleep and jumped up to go over to Harry's bed. He barely touched Harry's shoulder and the teenager bolted upright, looking around, wildly. "Harry, you're alright," Sirius said, calmly. "It's okay…"

"Sorry," Harry muttered, reaching for his glasses before rubbing the back of his neck. "Nightmares."

Sirius looked at Harry for a moment, then said, "You probably don't want to go back to sleep, do you?"

Harry shook his head before sitting up more. "Not really."

Sirius nodded. Thinking of when he'd had another nightmare a few months ago, he asked, "You want to hear more stories about James and Lily?"

"Yeah… okay," Harry replied. Thinking of the questions he had about his parents, he finally asked, "Uh… What did Mum and Dad do on their first date?"

Sirius laughed, thinking of the memory. "I know that first hand because Wormtail and I spied on James that evening. He took Lily to the edge of the lake where he'd set up a picnic dinner. They spent hours sitting and talking… and the food was driving Wormtail and I crazy because we were skipping dinner to make sure James didn't screw anything up."

"You helped Dad with his date with Mom?" Harry asked, curious.

"Remus helped with the planning of the evening and what to say to get Lily's interest," Sirius replied, "I gave James ideas for the romantic food and how to charm the pants off Lily. Er, I mean—"

Harry grinned and decided to spare his godfather some embarrassment. "I know what you mean, Sirius."

"A year after we graduated, James proposed to Lily," Sirius went on. "Remus was coming up on a full moon, so I had to help James plan everything out perfectly. He took Lily to a very romantic—and expensive—muggle restaurant; he even bought her a dozen roses which he gave her when they met up that evening. The waiter came with the ring box on a small plate. James took the ring, got down on one knee, and proposed."

"Did Mum cry?" Harry asked, picturing the scene in his mind.

"She couldn't even say 'yes'," Sirius said, his tome reminiscent. "James told me all she could do was nod." Thinking of Lily, Sirius got up and went to the small dresser where he kept his own clothes. After a few moments of searching through the drawers, he came back with a diamond ring. "I know that you and Hermione are still young. But, uh… if you feel that some day you might want to get married…" Handing the ring to Harry, Sirius cleared his throat before going on. "That was Lily's engagement ring. She, uh, left it to you in case you ever met someone you loved as much as she loved your dad."

Harry studied the platinum and diamond ring. It was a different from the traditional band. Two hands held a crowned diamond heart and on the inside, were the words, _'For my greatest treasure'_. "Thanks, Sirius," Harry said, thinking of how the ring would look on Hermione's hand someday.

* * *

December came quickly and before Harry knew it, he was on the Hogwarts Express back to London and on his way to a warm, friendly Christmas vacation at the Burrow.

To his surprise, Casey Novak was due to spend a few days at the Burrow as well before taking a muggle airplane flight back to New York for the remainder of the holiday.

On the train it their own compartment Harry had shifted himself from his wheelchair to the train seat next to Hermione who took his hand in hers. "It'll be nice to have some time away from Hogwarts," Hermione said, resting her head on Harry's shoulder and letting out a weary sigh. "I have to admit… even I've been feeling the strain this year."

"Hermione Granger is overworked?" Harry said with mock incredulity. "What next? I'm able to get up and walk?"

Hermione raised her head and looked up at her boyfriend with a morose expression. She hadn't meant to make him feel bad about his situation. "Harry, I didn't mean…"

"I was joking, Hermione," Harry said, shrugging, before looking down at his immobile legs. He'd tried to make a joke about his paralysis, but he'd instead made himself feel worse.

"Harry…" Hermione saw that he was starting to become withdrawn again and she waited until he finally turned to look at her. "Harry, I know this has been hard on you. But I love you whether you can walk or not."

Harry pulled his girlfriend into a kiss and after a few wonderful minutes, he said, "You really don't mind if I'm in this wheelchair the rest of my life?"

Hermione smiled, knowing Harry just needed a bit of reassurance. "I love you, Harry. And if you can deal with this then I can certainly deal with this. The fact that you can't walk doesn't diminish who you _are_."

"Thanks," Harry added before he and Hermione resumed their kissing.

xxxxxxxxxx

The snow—which had stopped during the train ride—had started falling again when Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Ron finally got to King's Cross Station. Up on the platform, Sirius stood with Casey Novak and Tonks, all three of whom were dressed in muggle clothes.

As Harry rolled down the ramp set up by one of the exits, Sirius noticed that Hermione had a hand resting on the back of Harry's wheelchair. Harry and Hermione seemed to be closer and closer every time Sirius saw them and while he was happy that his godson had found someone who seemed to be his soul mate, the part of his brain that was built for responsibility told Sirius that he should have a talk with Harry about intimate relationships.

But saving that thought for later, Sirius asked, jovially, "Ready for Molly's cooking, Prongslet?"

"Am I ever!" Harry replied, eagerly. "I barely had anything to eat on the train. I'm starving!"

"Molly promised to prepare an authentic American meal," Casey said, looking cheerful.

"What? Pot roast?" Harry quipped, lightly. Although at the moment, dinner could be dry cereal on a paper plate and he wouldn't complain.

"Come on," Tonks said, impatiently, her own stomach growling. "Let's go. I'm starving!"

Molly Weasley was just pulling a large casserole dish out of the oven when Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Sirius, Casey, and Tonks came in through the door. "Oh, good!" Molly said, bustling out of the kitchen after setting the dish on the counter. "I was starting to worry you couldn't get up the lane. How's the snow?"

"Sirius had to carry me," Harry admitted, looking a bit abashed as he directed the wheelchair into the living room. "My wheelchair couldn't get through the snow drifts."

"Well, come on in," Molly said, trying to tactfully change the subject as Harry presently seemed embarrassed by the fact that he'd once again been significantly hindered by his disability. "I've got a fire going in the living room if you all want to hang your coats up to dry. Sirius, do you mind helping me finish supper?"

"Sure thing, Molly," Sirius replied, nodding, as he followed Molly to the kitchen and looked at the casserole sitting on the counter. "What's this?" He asked, looking through the glass lid. The dish contained elbow noodles in a thick, bubbly sauce and was topped by a golden brown, cheesy crust.

"Macaroni and cheese," Molly replied, opening the oven and pulling out a pan of… "It's cornbread," Molly explained, catching Sirius's questioning look. "I've also done barbequed ribs, homemade applesauce…"

"Casey mentioned you were doing an American style meal," Sirius said, going to the refrigerator and pulling out a bowl of lobster salad. Chunks of succulent lobster meat were lightly dressed with mayonnaise and there was just the faintest aroma of lemons coming from the mixture.

"That's for the lobster rolls," Molly said, smiling, as she retrieved the special buns she'd baked just for said rolls.

"Did you say lobster rolls?" Casey said, eagerly, as she came into the kitchen. Looking from the lobster mixture to Mrs. Weasley, she said, sincerely, "Molly, I really think I love you right now."

Chuckling, Molly turned to Casey. "I wrote to your friend, Detective Tutuola, for some of your favorite foods. I thought this might make you feel a bit more at home."

"Ribs, cornbread, mac and cheese, lobster rolls…" Casey's mouth was watering as she caught a whiff of the maple barbeque sauce simmering on the stove. It was sweet and smoky and she could detect just a hint of bacon… "We better eat soon or I'm gonna just—"

"In a few minutes, dear," Molly promised, looking at Sirius. "Why don't you put drinks out and then call everyone to eat?"

Once everyone was seated at the table—Arthur was working late with Bill and the twins were still in Diagon Alley at their flat—Molly dished out the food.

Following Casey's example, the others put heaping spoonfuls of the creamy lobster salad on the grilled buns and dug in, sampling the ribs, cornbread, macaroni and cheese and the applesauce and even going back for seconds.

"This is delicious," Harry said, chewing a bite of his lobster roll. He'd never had lobster before and the meat was tender and sweet with just the faintest touch of salt. The dressing added just enough creamy tang and the lemon tickled his taste buds while the toasted bun added a delightful texture contrast.

"There's this hole in the wall diner in Manhattan," Casey said, before pulling the meat off a rib with her teeth. After finishing the rib—stopping short of knowing on the bone—she went on. "Best lobster rolls outside of Maine. It's my secret spot. Far as I know, no one knows I go there on a regular basis."

"What's for dessert?" Hermione asked, pushing her plate away a bit. She'd already had a stuffed roll, a heaping scoop of the macaroni, 5 ribs, and a healthy slice of the cornbread. To be honest, she wasn't even sure she had room for dessert.

Molly smiled as she stood to retrieve dessert from where it had been staying warm in the oven. "Apple crisp pie with vanilla bean ice cream."

"Keep cooking like this and I might not even bother going back to New York," Casey said, as the scents of apples and cinnamon wafted from the kitchen, filling practically the entire house with the intoxicating aroma.

Once everyone was finished with dinner, Sirius helped Molly clear the table before bringing out the still warm pies and two containers of ice cream which was flecked with actual vanilla bean pulp.

Even though he was full, Harry managed to make room for pie and ice cream, although he thought for sure he wouldn't need to eat again for the rest of the year.

* * *

_Manhattan, New York_

_SVU Precinct_

"The professor returns!" Detective John Munch said, looking up from his desk and seeing Casey Novak walk into the squad room the day before Christmas.

Olivia Benson looked up as well and gave the former ADA a welcoming smile. "Hey. How's England?"

"Snowy," Casey replied, grinning. "Even worse than here. So how's it going back in civilization?"

"We're surviving," Munch replied, shrugging. "How's teaching?"

"I prefer prosecuting rapists and murderers to be honest," Casey replied, as she saw Stabler and Fin come into the room.

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Fin said, looking stunned. "Teaching is worse than dealing with this shit?"

"Come on, it can't be that bad," Olivia said, leaning back in her chair.

"I'm starting to get it. No recent lab explosions," Casey said as Stabler sat on the edge of Olivia's desk. "So… what's been happening around here?"

"Not much," Stabler replied. "Usual mess of pervs and victims."

But Casey noticed the looks from the detectives and when her eye landed on Fin, she realized that not only did the others know the truth, but that Fin had been the one to tell them. "You guys know I'm a witch," she stated, keeping her voice down.

"Why didn't you ever tell us about it?" Olivia wanted to know.

But Casey wasn't in the mood to answer the question and replied vaguely, "It wasn't my life anymore. Not until now."

* * *

_The Burrow, England_

_Christmas Day_

Harry was awoken by a pillow flung at him by Ron who was up and had already pulled a sweater over his pajamas. Reaching for his glasses, Harry asked, "What time is it?"

"8:45," Ron replied, watching Harry sit up before getting himself situated in his wheelchair.

"I'm going to hit the bathroom. I'll meet you downstairs," Harry said, directing his chair towards the door.

Ron wanted to ask Harry if he needed help but figured that his best friend would call if he did need assistance.

Downstairs, the entire Weasley family—exempting Percy—along with Hermione and Sirius were gathered in the living room where a roaring fire was going steadily and a small mountain of presents was gathered under a beautiful Christmas tree. Hermione and Ginny had already started passing gifts around to the others, setting Harry's aside in a small pile.

Seeing Ron come into the room alone, Sirius frowned slightly as he asked, "Where's Harry?"

"He's in the bathroom. He'll be down in a few moments," Ron said, sitting on the floor by the couch after giving his mother a hug. "Merry Christmas, Mum."

"Sirius, where are you going?" Hermione asked, as she watched Harry's godfather get off the couch and head out of the room and towards the stairs.

"I'll be back in a moment," Sirius assured her. He headed upstairs and found Harry in his room pulling one of the sweaters Molly had made for him. "Harry, I've been thinking. I know lately we've been talking about your parents, but other than that, you've been really quiet with me and I can't help but think that there's something bothering you."

"It's nothing," Harry said, shrugging. There was something bothering him, but he hadn't wanted to mention it especially considering the events of the summer.

"Harry, you can talk to me about anything," Sirius assured Harry. "Whether it's about school, or your friends… or about being in the wheelchair."

Harry sighed deeply, realizing that Sirius was right. "I just keep wondering why you didn't want me to live with you," he said, directly.

Sirius sighed and sat down on Harry's bed, knowing that it was time to give Harry the whole story. "When you were born there was a compromise between James and Lily. I would be named your godfather… but Molly Weasley would be made your legal guardian."

"What?" Harry was stunned by this. "Why wouldn't Mum want me living with you?"

"Because of the fact that I was always the most irresponsible of the Marauders," Sirius replied. "Lily wanted you to live with Moony, but since he was a werewolf it wasn't allowed."

"And she didn't trust Pettigrew?" Harry added, grateful that he hadn't been raised by Wormtail.

"Exactly," Sirius replied. "Molly agreed, of course. She always loved having Lily around. But that's why Molly has always been…"

"Like a second mother," Harry whispered. He'd never really understood why Mrs. Weasley had almost instantly opened her home and her heart to him. But now he could see that she'd simply been playing the role she always should have been.

"I'd love for you to live with me, Harry," Sirius said, looking Harry in the eye. "And if that's what you want, you can move in after Christmas."

"It's okay, Sirius," Harry replied, nodding as he understood. "Mum wanted to be here and I think it's best for right now. I just thought…"

"That it was because of the wheelchair?" Sirius shook his head. "Harry, some nights when I was in Azkaban… the only thing that got me through was thinking about you. Knowing that you were out there and that some day I'd get a chance to have a life with you—and that you could get to know Moony and more about your parents… I'd be dead by now if I didn't have the idea of you to hold on to." Standing up and looking at Harry, Sirius grinned. "Disability or no, you're the best thing in my life. Now… there's a huge pile of presents downstairs and I'm eager to rip into them. What do you say, Prongslet?"

xxxxxxxxx

"Harry, what's it like?" Hermione asked as the two of them sat in the kitchen late that night sharing a butterbeer. Neither of them felt like going to sleep and so they just sat at the table talking

"Which part?" Harry asked, sipping his drink. Catching his girlfriend's glance at the wheelchair, Harry sighed, trying to think of the best way to explain. "It's like… being under a partial version of _Petrificus Totalus_. I can feel my legs, but… no matter how hard I try they just won't move."

Hermione didn't reply at once but after a while she asked, "What was the scariest moment after the accident?"

Harry thought on it for a while. "When I woke up in the hospital a day or so later. I couldn't move at all, really. I just kept wondering what was going on. If I would be okay or…" After sipping his drink, he went on. "You can't imagine what it's like. I want to just get up, but my legs just won't budge."

Hermione reached out a hand and Harry took it, looking into her beautiful brown eyes. She gave him a smile as she said, "I love you, Harry. And I meant what I said before. I don't care if you can walk. I just want to be with you."

"Thanks, 'Mione," Harry said, smiling back at her. "It's a bit easier to deal with this knowing you guys are here to help me. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have Sirius here. If he'd died that night instead of…"

Hermione squeezed his hand, knowing what was weighing on Harry's mind. "Lupin's death wasn't your fault, Harry. Bellatrix Lestrange was the one who—"

"I know…" Harry said, squeezing back. He hated wrestling with his guilt all the time. It was hard to explain, but ever since finding out that he was basically considered the savior of the wizarding world, he felt like it was his responsibility to save absolutely everyone he met since finding out he was a wizard. "I just keep imagining if Sirius had died…"

"But he didn't." Hermione looked at her boyfriend and added, "Harry, I know it's hard for you to talk about your situation, but promise me you won't shut me out. I want to help you. Even if you're embarrassed, you can talk to me about anything. I really do care about you."

Harry nodded and after the two finished their drinks in amicable silence, Harry finally went up to his room and directed his chair up to the bed. After throwing back the blankets, he moved over to the bed and moved his legs underneath before lying down and taking his glasses off and setting them on his nightstand. Smiling as he thought of Hermione, he closed his eyes and to his surprise, he was soon sound asleep.

* * *

King's Cross station hadn't yet become busy when the Weasleys, Hermione, and Harry arrived at the barrier between platforms 9 and 10 on the morning of January 3rd.

Ron and Ginny went through first followed by Hermione and after the twins went through with the bags, Harry directed his wheelchair through the barrier where he stopped upon hearing someone talking to him.

"Have a good holiday, Harry?"

Harry turned to see Casey Novak coming through the barrier as well, her bag over her shoulder. "Yeah, it was fun," he replied, brightly. "How was New York?"

"Same as always," Casey replied, smiling. "I found out that the others figured out I'm a witch."

"Is that good or bad?" Harry asked, curious about how the muggle detectives would have handled that news.

"Good, I guess," Casey replied, following Harry and his friends back onto the train and into a compartment. "At least now I don't have to worry about coding my letters."

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Hermione said, quickly, grabbing her bag and digging around for something. After a moment, she pulled out a small notebook and started flipping pages until she pulled out a piece of paper. "I found out that in the Southwestern United States the wizarding community down there has collaborated with some muggle judges to establish a combined court system."

Casey read over the information Hermione handed her, her mind racing. This was the solution she'd been looking for. And she even knew one of the judges mentioned. "This is excellent." Looking up at Hermione, she added, "Thank you."

Encouraged by the compliment, Hermione pressed on with her news. "Before the holiday I asked Susan Bones—her aunt is the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement—if she could arrange a meeting between you and her aunt. Madame Bones agreed to meet you next Saturday at 10am." Hermione looked pleased about it as she handed a scrap of parchment to the Potions professor.

Casey looked slightly surprised at that news. "I couldn't get a hearing at the Ministry to save my life," she finally said, trying to figure out how this teenager had succeeded where she'd failed. But Casey figured it probably had something to do with her living as a muggle for so long.

"Madame Bones heard about Harry," Hermione explained, noticing that Harry straightened up a little when he realized that he was the reason for Hermione's success. "She was horrified by what happened to him. And she was especially angry that Vernon and Dudley Dursley got off so lightly."

"Hey, Rikers isn't exactly what I'd call 'light'," Casey argued. Muggle prison was hardly a cakewalk after all.

"I think she means as opposed to Azkaban," Harry replied with a slight smile. "And as terrible as the dementors are, I hate to say, but… Vernon deserves it."

"What about your cousin?" Ginny asked, curious. She could hardly disagree with the idea of Vernon Dursley deserving at least a couple years with the dementors, but Dudley was still technically a kid. A violent, sociopathic kid, but still…

Harry thought for a moment before replying with a thought that had been on his mind for a while now. "What gets me about Dudley is that they tried him as a juvenile rather than an adult."

"The District Attorney thought that it was a better bet trying Dudley as a kid," Casey explained, seeing Harry's look. "I wanted to try him as an adult but the D.A. thought that he might get off, or at least get a shorter sentence."

Harry didn't say anything for a while but he finally asked, "If you can talk Madame Bones into trying my uncle and cousin… what then?"

Casey Novak only hesitated for a brief moment before saying, "If I can talk her into presiding over a hearing, I will see to it that they are punished to the full extent of the law."

"Aunt Petunia, as well?" Harry added, hopefully. To him, his aunt's lack of action was even worse than the violence perpetrated by his uncle and cousin.

Casey nodded as she promised, "I won't let any of them get away with their actions against you, Harry."

* * *

Amelia Bones only took one day off a week—usually Saturday to work on her garden—but this was one time she felt that it was more important to go into the office.

Casey Novak was waiting patiently outside the office when Amelia walked up. "Madame Bones," Casey said, eagerly, shaking the other woman's hand. "Thank you for seeing me."

"You would be Ms. Cassandra Novak, yes?" Amelia inquired as she opened the door and stepped inside. "Miss Hermione Granger told me you wanted to see me."

"I did," Casey replied, nodding as she entered the office. "I wanted to talk to you about Harry Potter."

"We pride ourselves on living harmoniously with muggles and we prosecute to the fullest extent when a witch or wizard attacks an innocent muggle," Amelia said, as she sat behind her desk, gesturing for Casey to take a seat as well. "Yet when one of the most famous wizards of our time is attacked, the wizarding legal system fails us."

"Then put the Dursleys on trial yourself," Casey replied, simply.

"I would most certainly like to," Amelia said, thinking of sending Potter's relatives to a cell in Azkaban. "But there aren't many members of the Wizengamot who would join me. Maybe… five others."

Casey grinned. Long shots like that were what she had lived for as an ADA. "You get the other people… I'll help with the prosecution."

"There are a few other details that we must discuss first," Amelia said, wanting to make sure Casey fully understood the situation before the younger woman got too ahead of herself. "First off… Harry Potter's uncle and cousin are presently in an American prison, correct?"

Casey nodded. "I've already sent messages along that the local English courts will also be putting them on trial. Vernon and Dudley Dursley will be sent here and then if they're convicted and sentenced here you will have the decision of whether the two sentences will be consecutive or concurrent."

"If the Wizengamot decides against punishing the Dursleys?" Amelia asked, curiously. "I do not want to be responsible for letting them loose. Even though he is living with the Weasleys, the Dursleys could still retaliate on Harry."

"If we don't convict here then the Dursleys be sent back to their imprisonment in New York," Casey replied. "All bases are covered."

Amelia leaned back in her chair, thinking. After a few minutes, she leaned forward. "I will contact the others members of the high court and I will tell you when the trial date will be."

Casey nodded and stood, shaking Amelia's hand. "Thank you very much."

"Thank me," Amelia said, standing as well. "—when we've successfully prosecuted the Dursleys."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Blaise Zabini had always seemed to be a quiet, unassuming student. He made good grades, but was not particularly studious. He had friends not only in Slytherin but also in Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

That was why Draco Malfoy had chosen him to help carry out his plans. Malfoy needed someone unassuming who would be able to get close to Harry without setting off alarms. But that was just part of Malfoy's master plan.

The first part was repairing the Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement. Without that, everything else was pointless.

The other part was that—if possible—Zabini had to try to keep Harry Potter from nosing around too much. Not that that was a very difficult task, currently. With Potter in a wheelchair, he had much more important things to worry about.

Still… further injuring Potter would be amusing to say the least. But doing it would very tricky given that Professor Novak wasn't covering for her house anymore and half the castle was keeping an eye on Potter just in case someone tried something.

It would have to look like an accident, but even that would be risky.

* * *

Hermione stuffed her Arithmancy book into her bag as she left the classroom. Next was Defense Against the Dark Arts and Harry was supposed to be helping the students with improving their dueling abilities. It was amazing that the simple act of instructing others made Harry seem more like his old self. He ran the classes with as much professionalism as any of the other professors and never even let the older students take advantage of him even though he was in the wheelchair.

Hermione was pulled from her thoughts when she noticed that there was an unusual amount of students rushing past her as she headed up the stairs to the 6th floor where the Room of Requirement was, and as she got to the top of the stairs she saw a crowd of people gathered at the foot of the staircase going up to the 7th floor. "Excuse me," she said, trying to get through the throng. "What's going on? Clear the way, please, I'm a Prefect."

The students parted and Hermione's bag slipped from her hand, landing on the stone floor and spilling books and parchment as she saw the horrific scene that lay before her.

Harry was lying on the floor in a crumpled heap, his wheelchair on its side next to him. Harry didn't move and at first, Hermione couldn't even tell if he was still breathing.

"HARRY!" Hermione screamed as she rushed towards him, dropping to her knees next to Harry. Looking around wildly, she tried to think of what to do. "Uh… Get Madame Pomfrey! Dumbledore! Anyone! Don't just stand there—someone go get help!"

Some of the students hurried off, hopefully to get help.

Harry was still unconscious and entirely unresponsive, and as Hermione looked him over, she could see that both his legs were broken. But who knew what additional injuries Harry might have?

It seemed to take forever, but finally Dumbledore pushed through the remaining crowd followed by Madame Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall. All three seemed aghast at the sight of Harry sprawled on the ground, but they immediately attended to the injured student.

"Miss Granger, what happened?" Dumbledore asked as Pomfrey immobilized Harry and levitated him onto a stretcher before splinting his legs.

"Why are you immobilizing him?" Hermione asked, ignoring the headmaster's question as she started to follow the school nurse down the hallway and down the stairs, bombarding Pomfrey with questions as she went. "What's wrong with Harry? Will he be alright? He's going to be okay, isn't he? He didn't hurt his back again, did he?"

"Miss Granger," Dumbledore repeated firmly as they reached the 5th floor. He stepped forward and took Hermione's arm in a gentle, yet firm grip. "Please. Let Madame Pomfrey take care of Harry." Hermione nodded, tears streaming down her face. After a moment, though, she hugged Dumbledore tightly, sobbing loudly. Dumbledore was stunned for only a brief moment, but then he put his arms around Hermione and said, calmly, "I know you are afraid for Harry. But if he could survive his ordeal this summer along with all the other hardships he has endured over the years, then I have no doubts that he will overcome this as well."

Pulling away, Hermione tried to feel reassured as she said, "I need to see him, sir. I need to know he's not…"

Dumbledore nodded in understanding and after whispering something to McGonagall he swept down the stairs, Hermione right behind him.

When they got to the hospital wing they found Pomfrey gently placing Harry on a bed before waving her wand over Harry's unconscious form as she performed a series of diagnostic spells to determine the full extent of the boy's injuries.

"Is he okay?" Hermione asked, tears still streaming. She hoped that Harry wasn't too badly injured.

Ignoring the young Gryffindor student, Pomfrey looked up at Dumbledore. "Albus, contact St. Mungo's and tell them to send a healer immediately."

"What's wrong?" Hermione repeated, urgently. Pomfrey could heal just about anything! Was Harry so badly hurt that he might…? Dumbledore left quickly as Hermione watched Madame Pomfrey magically splint both Harry's legs. "Please tell me what's going on," Hermione begged.

Pomfrey turned to look at Hermione, her face impassive, but Hermione could see the worry in the woman's eyes. "It will take some time to repair Potter's broken legs…" she replied, quietly. "But I should be able to heal the injuries. The internal bleeding and damage to Potter's spinal cord I will need assistance with. "

As Pomfrey started working on healing and stabilizing spells, Hermione tried to think, even though her mind was abuzz with what she'd been told. Harry had internal injuries and he'd injured his spine again. _'Please,'_ Hermione prayed. _'Please let Harry be okay.'_ But she couldn't help running through worst case scenarios.

x

As soon as Dumbledore returned with Healer Brianna Jacques, the headmaster gently took Hermione's arm and led her out of the room. "We should let them alone so they can take care of Harry," Dumbledore said, quietly and insistently when Hermione resisted. "And I need you to contact Sirius and inform him of what has happened."

"No need, sir," Sirius said as he came up to them, out of breath from running down the stairs. "The house-elf—Dobby—found me. He'd set up some sort of alarm in case something happened to Harry."

Peeking from behind Sirius was the small house elf who seemed to be cowering as though he were afraid of punishment. "Dobby is sorry he didn't protect Harry Potter, Professor Dumbledore, sir! Dobby is very, very sorry!"

"Dobby, you have nothing to worry about," Hermione said, trying force her face into a brave smile as she knelt down. "Harry will be okay. You didn't do anything wrong."

"Professor Dumbledore?" Healer Jacques had poked her head out of the hospital wing and she glanced briefly at Hermione and Sirius before looking back at the headmaster. "We need your help in here, sir."

Dumbledore nodded and went in, the door closing softly behind him. "How is Harry?" He asked, looking at Jacques and Pomfrey.

Jacques shook her head. "Well, the good news is that it will take some work, but I'll be able to heal the further damage to Mr. Potter's spinal cord."

"How much damage?" Dumbledore inquired, suddenly worried. Harry had been making progress with his mobility these past months. How far would this latest incident set the teenager back, he wondered?

"Full-body paralysis," Jacques replied as she finished healing the teenager's internal injuries. "Luckily, the spinal injuries aren't complete. Otherwise healing Potter might not be entirely possible.

Harry let out a groan and opened his eyes, blinking as he looked around. "Wha… what… happened?"

"Harry," Dumbledore said, quickly, trying to keep the teenager calm. "You had an accident on the stairs. Can you tell me what happened?"

Harry's eyes were darting around as he realized he was completely immobile. "I can't move."

Dumbledore hesitated for a moment, wondering what to say, but then decided on the truth and said, "We used a variant of _Petrificus Totalus_ to make sure you didn't move and injure yourself more." Putting a hand on Harry's shoulder, he added, "You'll be okay, Harry."

Harry started to turn his head but Pomfrey stopped him. "Don't move your neck, Potter. We're working on healing your spine and we don't need you moving and making it worse."

"Worse?" Harry said, panic rising. "How much… worse?" He tried to calm down, but he felt like he wasn't getting enough air.

Jacques looked at him and replied, "You're completely paralyzed from the neck down, Harry," she said, simply. "We're doing all we can but it will take about 8 hours to repair all the newest damage."

"But… then I'll… be… okay?" Harry said, slowly. Oh, God… What if he wasn't okay? What if he ended up as a quadriplegic—unable to move at all?

Pomfrey looked at Harry when she heard his weak breathing and a quick diagnostic spell revealed that her newest fear was spot on. "His lungs aren't working," she reported, urgently.

Jacques dug into the bag she'd brought with her and pulled out a device Harry recognized immediately. The healer looked regretful as she said, "Harry, I'm sorry to do this to you, but your lungs aren't working like they should." With the skill of a muggle doctor, she'd intubated Harry and hooked him up to a small device which she set on the floor next to the bed. "It's a magical ventilator, Harry," Jacques explained as she resumed the healing spells for Harry's spine. "Just until I can make sure your lungs are working properly again."

Harry gave the slightest nod and tried not to let his panic overwhelm him. As if things weren't bad enough, now he was on a ventilator again. As hard as he tried, he couldn't help the rising panic within him and the fact that he couldn't feel his body wasn't helping.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

The last rays of the sun were shining through the windows of the Hospital wing when Harry was finally able to feel his body. And immediately he wished he couldn't. Sharp and throbbing pain shot up and down his back and his legs hut like hell. His chest and stomach hurt as well and breathing was starting to get painful as well.

"Potter, squeeze my hand," Jacques said, taking Harry's left hand. After a moment, Harry's hand squeezed and his eyes lit up hopefully. "Okay," the healer said, smiling. "You've got full sensation back. Other hand?" Once she was satisfied that Harry could move his arms, she waved her wand and Harry's bed elevated so the teenager was in more of an upright position. Looking down, Harry saw that his legs were still splinted. Jacques caught the look and replied, "We needed to take care of your other injuries first—particularly your spine. Now… Would you like that tube out of your throat?"

Harry nodded quickly and in less than a minute the tube was out and he coughed hard, which added to the pain in his chest from his injured ribs. But on the upside, at least he was breathing on his own again. "Thanks," he said, slightly breathless.

"Just lie back and relax, Mr. Potter," Jacques said as she and Pomfrey started on Harry's legs. "We'll have you finished in a couple hours."

"Can I see… Hermione now?" Harry asked, looking at Dumbledore hopefully.

"Certainly," Dumbledore said, nodding. "And your godfather is here as well." Going to the door and opening it, Sirius, Hermione, and the entire Weasley family—except for Charlie and Percy—entered the room behind them.

"Harry," Mrs. Weasley said, as she ran to his side, pulling a chair up to the bedside. "Oh, thank Merlin you're alright." She gave him a look over and once she was satisfied that he was alright, she sat down and squeezed his hand.

"You worried the hell out of us, mate," Ron said, smiling. "And you took a few decades off Hermione's life, too."

Hermione went to the other side of Harry's bed and carefully sat next to him, taking his hand in both of hers. "I thought I'd lost you." Happy and relieved tears rolled down her cheeks as she leaned forward and kissed Harry on the lips. "Don't ever scare me like that again!" She admonished, halfheartedly.

"Harry," Dumbledore said, kindly. "Can you tell me what happened?"

Harry turned to look at the headmaster, looking slightly confused. "I-I don't know how he got in, sir… But It was Malfoy."

"Draco Malfoy?" Sirius said, flabbergasted. Turning to Dumbledore with a perplexed expression, he asked, "Didn't you expel him?"

"Yes," Dumbledore said, coolly. "Which means that we must question all the Slytherins to ascertain who let him back into the castle."

"Were there any other Slytherins around?" Hermione asked, thinking quickly.

Harry closed his eyes and tried to think. Mentally, he went back to the top of the steps, thinking about who was around before Malfoy suddenly appeared. "Blaise Zabini," he finally said, opening his eyes again. "He was standing with Malfoy at the top of the stairs."

"Then I will start with Mr. Zabini," Dumbledore said, leaving to find the student in question as well as Casey Novak.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Blaise was nervous as he sat in Professor Novak's office. The former ADA was slowly circling his chair, a steely eye on the teenager. He knew she was trying to intimidate him and it was working like a charm. "I-I don't k-know why you think I'd let Malfoy in," he said, trying to at least keep his voice steady. "He was e-expelled."

"Professor Dumbledore gave me permission to search your things," Casey said, stopping to lean against her desk, staring right into Blaise's eyes. "I found 5 letters to you from Draco Malfoy. I know you're working with him. Where is he?"

"I don't know!" Blaise protested, honestly. "I was just supposed to keep Potter and Dumbledore out of the way!"

"Why?" Casey pressed. When Blaise didn't reply right away, she stood up. "If you were behind this, then you're not only looking at expulsion… you'll also be facing criminal charges."

"What?" Blaise said, shocked. He hadn't thought of that.

"Unless you tell me right now what happened. I'll try to get you off with suspension," Casey said, calmly. This was the part she missed about being an Assistant District Attorney.

Blaise took a moment before saying, "Malfoy needed into the Room of Requirement. He said he had to fix… something, but he didn't tell me what. He told me to do whatever I had to do to keep Potter and Dumbledore busy. I didn't want to hurt anyone! Malfoy was the one who pushed Potter down the stairs! I couldn't do it! I just stood there!"

Casey took a moment before nodding. "Okay. I'll talk with Dumbledore."

* * *

In the Room of Requirement, Malfoy worked quickly to finish his repairs. That idiot Zabini had gotten busted and if that was the case then Malfoy had a very slim window in which to finish his task.

Banging on the wall made Malfoy jump and he started making the final repairs just as the door exploded open and he heard people running inside.

"Malfoy!" Sirius Black, Dumbledore, and Casey Novak ran in, wands pointed. "Don't do anything stupid, kid!" Sirius shouted as the teenager moved in front of a cabinet whose doors were open.

Malfoy didn't move for a moment until the wands pointed at him lowered slightly and he dove inside the cabinet, slamming the doors behind him, instantly transported back to Diagon Alley.

Casey ran forward and looked inside, but the cabinet was empty. "He's gone." Kicking the side, she swore. "It's a Vanishing Cabinet. He could be anywhere by now."

"Sirius, find out where the other cabinet is," Dumbledore said, quickly. "I will send the aurors to find and deal with Mr. Malfoy."

"Start with Snape," Casey said, looking around at the others. "He's probably the one who put Malfoy up to this. Besides, I have to prepare for a trial."

"I beg your pardon?" Dumbledore asked, politely. He wondered if Casey was already planning on prosecuting Snape and Malfoy for their crimes as Death Eaters.

"February 5th, the Dursleys are to be tried by the Wizengamot," Casey replied. "Hopefully this time they'll get the punishment they actually deserve."

* * *

"You almost got the both of us caught." Severus Snape's voice was the deadly tone only used when he was about to do something drastic. Glaring at his former student, he added, "If Potter had died…"

"Who cares if Potter's dead?" Malfoy sneered as he paced the living room of Snape's home on Spinner's End. "If he's gone, all the better, right?"

"The Dark Lord wants to kill Potter personally," Snape said, icily. "Did you finish the task?"

"Unless they destroy it, the cabinet has been repaired," Malfoy said, still pacing. "We can easily get back into the castle and end this once and for all."

"Then we must move quickly or the aurors will arrest us before we can carry out the plans," Snape said, looking at Malfoy. "I will contact the others and have them meet us in Diagon Alley at the appointed time."

"Tomorrow night," Malfoy confirmed. "At sunset we'll be inside the castle."

* * *

Harry Potter was NOT HAPPY.

Snape had somehow slipped a message to Dumbledore that the Death Eaters would be attacking the following evening at sundown, using the passage between the Vanishing Cabinets.

The problem was that despite his protests that he could still fight, even from the wheelchair, Madame Pomfrey had insisted Harry stay in the Hospital Wing.

"But I can help!" Harry shouted as he tried to sit up but he stopped as a sharp flash of pain shot up and down his spine. He tried not to cry out, but he couldn't help the gasp of pain that escaped him.

"And that is why you're not going anywhere, Mr. Potter," Pomfrey replied as she eased him back against the pillows he'd been propped up against and handed him a small vial of pain-reducing potion. "Your injuries may be healed, but your body's still sensitive. And it will take a while for you to rebuild your strength."

"So… I'm just going to be lying here while the Death Eaters attack?" Harry said, irritably. "Brilliant. Why don't you just hand me over to Voldemort now?"

"Professor Dumbledore has made arrangements for you to be taken to a secured location in the castle," Pomfrey explained. "You'll be safe, I assure you, Potter."

"So while everyone else is risking their lives, I'll be stuck in bed," Harry grumbled. "Wonderful."

Pomfrey sighed, deeply. She hated seeing the poor boy like this, but knew that right now what Harry needed was to take it easy for a little while longer.. "Potter, I know you want to be part of the upcoming battle but the best thing you can do right is rest."

Harry sighed, resignedly. He knew Pomfrey was right, even though he hated to admit it. "Can you at least help me sit up a bit more?" He asked, hopefully.

Pomfrey nodded and went to Harry's side, sliding an arm behind him. "Gently, now," she warned, slowly easing Harry forward.

Harry started sitting up but winced after only a little bit of light movement. "I'm okay," he said, stubbornly, and after sitting up a bit more, the Hogwarts nurse slid a few more pillows behind him, making sure his back was properly cushioned and supported.

"Just rest, Potter," Pomfrey said after getting Harry settled. Looking to the entrance as the doors creaked she saw Hermione, Sirius, Tonks, and Casey coming in. "You've got visitors," she added, hoping the group would distract Harry from his desire to help with the coming battle.

"Harry, how are you?" Hermione asked, giving him a kiss before sitting on the edge of the bed. After all the possible terrible things that might have happened, it was good to see that Harry would be alright.

"I wish I could get out of bed," Harry said, shrugging, and trying not to show that the simple movement hurt. "But it hurts to move too much."

"You scared all of us, Prongslet," Sirius said, looking serious. "I'm just glad you're going to be alright."

"Well, it will be a while before Mr. Potter is up and about," Pomfrey said, quickly, as she came up to the group. "But he will recover for the most part."

"But he can't… I mean, his legs are still…" Hermione wasn't sure how to ask the question, but it seemed as though the Hogwarts nurse had been expecting the query.

Madame Pomfrey shook her head, sadly. She had been hoping that healer Jacques would be able to help Harry regain some use of his legs, but realistically had known it would be doubtful. "Potter still has no motor function in his legs."

Hermione sighed, knowing that it had been a long shot and took Harry's hand, squeezing it comfortingly. "So… even when he does get out of here he still won't be able to walk," she clarified.

"I'm sorry, Miss Granger," Pomfrey replied. "We did try to repair the old injuries as well." Turning to Harry she added, "Now you need to get some sleep, Mr. Potter. You'll be moved first thing tomorrow morning."

* * *

With the aurors on the look out for Death Eater activity, Draco Malfoy had arranged for the second Vanishing Cabinet to be moved from Borgin and Burkes to an abandoned muggle house outside of Spinner's End. While he was disgusted that Snape had chosen the house as the starting point, Snape had warned him against talking ill of the house's deceased owners.

To Snape, the house had special meaning. Not because of his own past, but because once upon a time, a little redheaded girl with green eyes had lived here. A girl whom he still loved, even though she had been dead for 14 years.

The cabinet was in position in the open sitting room and as the sun started to set, the Death Eaters would use it to enter Hogwarts and take over the castle from the inside.

Milling around the house, Snape found himself in what was most likely Lily's old room. Sighing, he made a mental promise to the first and only girl he'd ever loved. _'I _will _protect Potter. And I _will_ make it up to you for what I've done.'_

* * *

The sun had just started rising above the mountains when Dumbledore entered the hospital wing followed by Severus Snape.

Going to Harry's bed where the teenager was still asleep, Dumbledore gently shook Harry's shoulder to rouse him. "Harry?" He said, gently, not wanting to startle the young man.

Harry slowly roused, taking his glasses from the headmaster and sliding them on before carefully sitting up and looking at Dumbledore. "Is it time, then?"

"Yes, Harry," Dumbledore replied, looking over at Snape who seemed wary about being so close to Harry.

Harry started when he saw the former Potions Master. Turning to Dumbledore, he asked, "What's Snape doing here?"

"Please remain calm, Harry," Dumbledore replied. "Snape is here at my invitation." With a wave of his wand, Harry's bed was in an upright position. "And since I'm sure you would have doubts about having Snape escort you to your destination, he shall wait here until I return." With a second wave of his wand, Dumbledore changed the metal legs of the bed into feet. "Just relax, Harry." With a smile, he added, "Enjoy the ride."

Harry nodded, cautiously. "Okay," he said, hesitantly, starting a bit when the bed started walking out of the room and up the staircases towards Gryffindor Tower.

xxxxxxxx

The Vanishing Cabinet had been relocated to the dungeons and since that was the point the Death Eaters would enter, Dumbledore had felt it better to relocate Harry to the furthest possible point.

As such, Harry had been moved to his suite with what seemed like an entire army as his bodyguards.

Once back in his suite, Harry's bed had transformed itself from the standard hospital wing bed he had been in, into what was more like a muggle hospital bed, complete with a small magical remote that could adjust the incline of the bed up and down.

Some of the other Gryffindor students seemed uncomfortable around Harry as they milled around the suite, but Ron, Hermione, Luna, and Neville stayed close by in case Harry needed anything.

"What I need is to be able to get up," Harry snapped, irritably, after the third time being asked.

"How long are you going to be like this?" Neville asked, curiously.

"Pomfrey said that she'd contact a magical physical therapist to start helping me next week," Harry said, as he looked out the window of his bedroom. The sun was starting to set and soon the Death Eaters would be making their attack. Once again he wished he was on the front line, but knew that there would be no changing Madame Pomfrey's mind.

"Don't worry, Harry," Neville said, trying to sound braver than he really felt. "We won't let anything happen to you."

"It's not me I'm worried about," Harry said, looking at his friend. "I'm just thinking of everyone else who's down in the dungeons."

"Sirius will be just fine," Hermione reassured him, sitting on the edge of Harry's bed and taking his hand. "Everyone will. Just relax."

"Relax?" Harry shouted as he tried to sit up even though the pain in his back was excruciating. "Hermione, I'm stuck in bed because Malfoy sent me down a long flight of stairs! Death Eaters are planning to attack! How can you sit there and tell me to relax?" Groaning, Harry lay back, panting heavily as the pain overwhelmed him.

"Harry…" Hermione said, calmly. "Don't worry about everything else right now. Once you're up and about again, then you can go back to that saving-people thing you do so well," she added with a smile.

Harry gave a weak smile back, even though his whole body seemed to hurt. "Did you hear that the Dursleys got a trial date before the Wizengamot?"

"What do you think will happen to them?" Ron asked, curious. "They've never sent a muggle to Azkaban before."

"There is always a first time for everything," Luna said, giving a slight shrug. "They would certainly deserve it."

"There aren't a lot of people who I'd say deserve a cell in Azkaban," Neville agreed, looking at Harry. "But from what you've said about what the Dursleys did to you… it-it seems… fair."

Fair wasn't a word that Harry used much in his life but the notion of the Dursleys going to Azkaban… yes. That seemed fair.

* * *

The dungeons were oddly deserted when Malfoy came out of the cabinet followed by the first wave of Death Eaters. But considering that it was dinner time, perhaps it wasn't as strange as it seemed.

"Quickly, now," Malfoy said, looking around, his wand out. The others followed him out of the cabinet, also armed and looked about, ready for a fight. When there was no one there to resist them, the Death Eaters felt more confident about the attack and followed their young companion out of the room.

As they started out of the dungeons, none of the Death Eaters expected the ambush that awaited them as they came into the Entrance Hall. Aurors and members of the Order of the Phoenix were standing around, ready with their wands raised.

One of the Death Eaters immediately grabbed Draco Malfoy by the throat and started squeezing. "YOU! TRAITOR!"

"Drop him!" Dumbledore gave a sweep of his wand and the person holding Malfoy flew backwards and hit the wall. Malfoy fell to the floor, gasping and coughing as he tried to breathe. A 7th year student who had opted to join the fight, quickly bustled the former student to the Hospital wing.

As more and more of the agents of Lord Voldemort came out of the dungeons, a team of aurors took secret passages to cut around to the dungeon where the cabinet was being kept.

Kingsley Shacklebolt stunned two Death Eaters that had just come out before using a Reductor Curse to blow up the cabinet and eliminating the entrance.

Back up in the Entrance Hall, the Death Eaters had been quickly neutralized and Dumbledore looked around at the aurors, Order members, and 7th year students that had helped. "That was surprisingly easy," he observed uneasily. He hated quick resolutions. They always made him feel like he had missed something.

"Yes," Alastor Moody replied, as aurors started taking the captives out. "But that could just be because we were prepared for them." However, the tone of his voice clearly indicated that he found that unlikely.

Dumbledore considered this then ordered students standing about, "Check every inch of the castle. Make sure there isn't anyone hiding, waiting to launch a second attack."

As the 7th years started to search the castle, Dumbledore sent a messenger to Harry.

xxxxxxx

Even though the castle had been cleared of any more Death Eaters, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Sirius decided to stand guard for Harry with Sirius lying by Harry's bed in his animagus form and Ron sleeping on the camp bed in the corner.

In Harry's connected sitting room, Ginny and Hermione decided to stay up in case something happened or there was some news.

Sitting on the floor, working on an essay for McGonagall, Hermione found herself distracted. She kept sneaking glances at Harry's bedroom door and wondering if Harry was okay.

"He'll be fine, Hermione," Ginny said, looking at her and sensing the train of thought. "And like Madame Pomfrey said… he'll be able to get out of bed in a few days."

"How is Harry supposed to defeat Voldemort if he's in a wheelchair?" Hermione asked, putting her things aside and looking up at Ginny. "He can't walk… Right now, he can barely sit up on his own…" Tears started sliding down Hermione's cheeks as she added, "He fell down a flight of bloody stairs and we almost lost him!"

Ginny knelt down and gave Hermione a sisterly hug. "Harry will bounce back from this. You'll see."

Wiping her eyes after giving Ginny a return hug, Hermione nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, he will… He has to, right? He's Harry after all."

* * *

4 days after the Death Eater incident, Harry was awoken by someone shaking his shoulder. Reaching for his glasses and sitting up carefully, Harry saw that Dumbledore, Pomfrey, and Healer Brianna Jacques were standing with a man that Harry hadn't seen before. Seeing Harry's questioning look, Dumbledore introduced the man in his late 20's. "Harry, this is Ryan Wilkinson. He's a physical therapist from St. Mungo's."

Harry adjusted his bed so he was sitting up a bit more before holding out his hand. "Nice to meet you."

Ryan shook Harry's hand and replied, "I know you're probably eager to get up an about again, but we're going to do this slowly, alright? We don't want any setbacks." Harry nodded in agreement. "Okay…" Ryan started. "First off, how's your arm strength right now?"

"Pretty good," Harry replied as Ryan came closer. He hadn't thought about it, honestly, but from what Harry could tell, his upper body strength was only slightly diminished… he hoped, anyway.

Holding his arm straight above Harry's head, Ryan said, "Okay, try pulling my arm down."

Harry reached up and after a while, he found himself—not pulling Ryan's arm down—but lifting himself up slightly.

"Good," Ryan said, smiling. "Very good. Well, since your arm strength is in fine shape, let's start with you moving around a bit, eh?"

Jacques brought Harry's motorized wheelchair over and parked it right next to the bed. "Now if you feel you can't do it, Harry," she warned. "Don't push yourself. If you hurt yourself, it'll be even longer before you can get up and around."

Harry nodded and threw back the blankets before sitting up and moving his legs over the edge of the bed. Reaching over for the armrests of his chair, he waited, seeing if his body would resist the movement. Thankfully, he felt only the usual amount of pain and discomfort and pushed it away easily. Doing a combination of lifting himself up, pushing off, and pulling, Harry found himself settled in the wheelchair. After getting his legs in a more comfortable position, he looked at Dumbledore and the others.

Brianna and Ryan seemed satisfied and after a while, the two led Harry to a new connected room which would serve as a PT room for Harry's rehab.

Dumbledore watched the three leave the bedroom and he smiled, his eyes twinkling with relief. He had been worried that Harry might not be strong enough yet, but thinking on it, he realized that he had forgotten that Harry had inherited stubbornness and resolve from both his parents.

* * *

The Ministry car pulled up to an old abandoned bus depot and parked along the street. It was February 5th and the trial of the Dursley Family was due to start in less than two hours.

Two Aurors got out of the car before pulling a man and woman out of the backseat along with a burly teenager. Kingsley Shacklebolt's grip on Vernon Dursley never let up as he led the man into the depot which served as today's entrance to the Ministry of Magic.

As soon as all three Dursleys arrived, reporters from a myriad of Wizarding newspapers and radio stations—British and American—swarmed the small group, bombarding all three of the Dursleys with questions.

"Mr. Dursley, how can you justify your abuse of Harry Potter?"

"Dudley, is it true you were trying to kill your cousin when you hit him with the car?"

"Mrs. Dursley, is it true you swore to kill Harry yourself if he ever talked about the abuse?"

"Mr. Dursley, did you ever sexually abuse Harry Potter?"

The questions continued as the Dursleys were led to courtroom 10 where they found Casey Novak standing with Albus Dumbledore and Healers Brianna Jacques and Ryan Wilkinson. "Nice to see you made it here in one piece," Casey said, smirking.

"You FREAKS have no authority over us!" Vernon spat at Casey. "You have attacked my family, and now you think that—"

"Mr. Dursley, I suggest you shut up before the press fries you in the evening news," Casey said, quietly, flicking her gaze to the side where the press army was waiting. "Of course, they'll probably do that anyway, so it's up to you."

Vernon's face grew red but he did shut up and the doors opened and he was led inside to one of three chairs in the center of the room. Once he was shoved into the chair, chains wrapped around, binding him, Petunia, and Dudley to the chairs. "What is the meaning of this?" Vernon shouted, looking up. The red in his face drained as he saw the scores of witches and wizards who filled the gallery, each of them wearing a look of anger or disgust. And seated in a motorized wheelchair in the front row was Harry whose expression was startlingly cold.

Amelia Bones stood and addressed the court, her voice clear and chilled as she spoke. "Members of the Wizengamot… You have been informed of Harry Potter's situation. How this summer he was the victim of a muggle car accident and lost all motor function of his legs. You have been informed of the years of abuse Vernon Dursley inflicted upon Mr. Potter and the torment from Dudley Dursley as well as Petunia's cover-ups of the abuse and injuries." Looking down at the Dursleys, Amelia didn't bother to hide her disgust as she went on. "The Dursleys have received punishment from the muggle law. Now we must determine the appropriate punishment by wizarding law." Looking at Casey Novak, she added, "Cassandra Novak… you have the floor."

"First witness is muggle Detective Odafin Tutuola," Casey said, looking at Fin who had come in and stood near the Dursleys, looking like he wanted to crack heads. "Detective, please describe when you first saw Harry Potter."

"When he was thrown out of a speeding car," Fin replied, simply. "Harry rolled and landed at my feet."

"What kind of injuries did Harry have?" Casey asked. Even though she knew the answer, she wanted the Wizengamot to hear the details of Harry's injuries.

"Left leg broken in 4 places; right arm, middle and ring finger, thumb and elbow broken; spinal fracture, broken ribs…" Fin gave a snarly look at the Dursleys as he remembered seeing the battered teenager lying on the ground back in New York.

"And what caused Harry's injuries?" Casey asked, crisply.

"Vernon Dursley attacked his nephew… broke the kid's fingers, thumb and ribs," Fin said, shortly. "In trying to get away, Harry ran into the street where he was hit by his uncle's rental car which had been driven by Dudley Dursley."

"Thank you, Detective," Casey said before introducing Healer Brianna Jacques. "Ms. Jacques… you've done physical examinations of Harry and you've read the muggle medical reports. Give us an overview."

"In the muggle hospital Mr. Potter's broken leg was set in a cast up to his hip. His fingers, thumb, and arm were set in a cast as well. A back and neck brace immobilized Mr. Potter's spinal cord to prevent movement and further injury," Jacques replied, succinctly. "The doctors also operated to repair internal injuries and stabilize the fractures and contusions."

"And has Harry recovered from his injuries?" Casey asked, glancing at the Wizengamot.

"The broken arm and leg, yes," Brianna replied, nodding.

"But not the spinal injury?" Casey asked in clarification.

Jacques shook her head. "While he still has full sensation below his waist, the nerves in Mr. Potter's spinal cord that control leg movements were severed. We tried to heal the nerves, but were unsuccessful."

"Is Harry able to stand or walk?" Casey asked, looking at the Dursleys who seemed to show no remorse for their collective actions.

"No. He can't move his legs at all," Jacques replied.

Casey nodded, wanting to make the wizarding court understand the severity of Harry's condition. "Will Harry ever regain the use of his legs?"

Up in the gallery, Harry felt his heart clench as he heard the testimony. He knew all this already but every time he heard the words it just drove the point home more and more. He would be in a wheelchair the rest of his life. He couldn't walk… He couldn't play Quidditch…

"Harry?" Looking up, Harry noticed that Dumbledore had bent over next to him. "It's time, Harry."

Harry nodded and after a few moments, he directed his wheelchair so that he was next to the Dursleys.

Casey looked at Harry and her gaze said 'I'll be brief'. "Harry, you recognize the three prisoners here today?"

Harry glanced over and nodded. "Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley Dursley," He replied, flatly.

"Your uncle, aunt, and cousin," Casey said, noticing the angry look on Harry's face.

"Your _family_ shouldn't beat you senseless or hit you with a car," Harry growled. "Petunia's the only one I share blood with."

Glancing at the Wizengamot, Casey added, "She's your mother's sister, correct?"

"Yes," Harry said, shortly. "Not like she ever acted like it. Worked me to death, never even took me to get basic immunizations when I was younger."

"So we have child abuse, vehicular assault, child labor, medical neglect… anything else you'd like to add, Harry?" Casey asked, stealing a look at the Dursleys.

"They kept me locked in a cupboard under the stairs till I was 11," Harry added. But looking back on it, that had probably been the least of the Dursleys' crimes.

"Noted," Casey replied, then gave a nod to indicate that Harry was free to leave the courtroom.

Outside, Harry ignored the calls from reporters and let one of the aurors lead him to a small room nearby where Sirius was waiting. "How're you holding up, Prongslet?" Sirius asked, his face full of concern.

"It never gets easier," Harry said, not meeting his godfather's gaze. "Talking about… you know… "

Sirius nodded, sympathetically. "I can only imagine how it's been for you. And what it was like for you to live all those years with the Dursleys. I failed you, Harry. I shouldn't have gone after Wormtail all those years ago. I should have just taken you somewhere. You, me, and Remus. We could have been a happy little family."

"It's not your fault, Sirius," Harry said, firmly. "It wasn't your fault at all. I would have done the same thing."

"But it is my fault," Sirius repeated. "You were to be my responsibility, Harry. If I hadn't been so hotheaded you never would have gone to the Dursleys and you never would have been hit by that car." Looking sadly at Harry he added, "You wouldn't be in that wheelchair."

"It happened the way it happened," Harry said, shrugging, not wanting to think about not being ably to move his legs. "Besides… You and I both know who's responsible for me ending up with the Dursleys."

"If it weren't for Voldemort being back…" Sirius said, trying to keep his cool. "Dumbledore manipulated you, Harry."

"He manipulated all of us, Sirius," Harry muttered. "Maybe he was just trying to do the right thing, but…"

"Justifying what he did doesn't make it right," Sirius countered.

"I know," Harry replied. "But Dumbledore did what he thought he had to do and… regardless of how we feel about it, it's done."

xx

"We the Wizengamot find the Dursleys guilty of the charges previously stated and do hereby sentence accordingly," one of the Wizards said as he faced the Dursleys.

Harry was once again in the first row of the gallery, facing his 'family' who looked rather frightened as they heard their fates. Prison had been bad enough—a prison of witches and wizards would be far worse.

Madame Bones stood and said, "Since your abuse of Harry Potter spanned 14 years, you will be sent to Azkaban for a period no less than _40_ years. In addition, all of your possessions and money will be given to Mr. Potter as fair payment for your mistreatment. This session of the Wizengamot is concluded."

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS!" Vernon roared as he was dragged off. "I'LL KILL YOU, POTTER!" Momentarily breaking free of the aurors holding him, Vernon charged for Harry but was thrown across the room when spells from Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, and Molly Weasley hit him.

Hermione stormed over to Harry's uncle and began kicking every inch of the man she could reach. "How DARE you do those things to Harry! You Bastard! Great bloody sod! You dirty, rotten son of a bitch!" She kept kicking the man, ignoring the others shouting at her.

"'Mione!" Harry zipped his wheelchair over to her and grabbed the back of her robes to pull her off of Vernon. "'Mione, enough!"

"And you!" Hermione went on as she whirled on Petunia and pulled a fist back to take a punch at Harry's aunt. The punch landed hard and Petunia seemed genuinely surprised at the attack.

"Hermione!" Harry shouted, grabbing his girlfriend's arm as she raised it for a second punch. "Enough!"

Hermione didn't lower her arm but she did slap Petunia hard in the face before turning finally to Dudley who looked like he'd like nothing better that to beat Hermione up. With the same look of cold fury she'd had when she'd slapped Draco Malfoy, Hermione pulled back a fist and hit Dudley in the jaw as hard as she could before she punched him again in the nose.

Looking over at Harry, Hermione gave a satisfied smile. "How's that for fair?"

"You didn't have to do that for me, 'Mione," Harry said, smiling at his girlfriend. "I could have handled them."

"I love you, Harry," Hermione replied, blushing slightly. "I'd beat them to a pulp if you'd let me," she added, giving a devilish grin.

Harry didn't say anything but he dug in his pants pocket for something. He'd had a thought and realized that this seemed to be the perfect time. Pulling his hand out, he took Hermione's hand in his free one. "Ever since we met… you've always been there for me. Through everything… Even when no one else stood by me, you're always there."

Hermione blushed even more. "Harry, you're being…" She stopped when Harry held out the object in his other hand. "Harry…" she breathed.

"I know," Harry replied, grinning like crazy. "We're young. And there's a war going on. But I love you. And I don't want to go into this alone. I need you with me, Hermione Granger." Holding up his mother's engagement ring, Harry asked, "Will you marry me, 'Mione?"


	8. Chapter 8

AUTHOR'S NOTES: The last chapter of my rewrite of Dei Ex Machina. I'm not opposed to rewrites of some of my other stories, so if there's one that you think I could improve upon, please let me know.

Chapter 8

* * *

"He asked you to marry him?" Lavender Brown asked the next morning at breakfast in the Hogwarts Great Hall. The Gryffindor 6th year girls were huddled together and gaping at the beautiful diamond engagement ring on Hermione's left hand. But while the others were impressed by the ring, they seemed to be wondering about the whole situation. "Hermione, do you really think you should?" Lavender wondered out loud.

Looking puzzled, Hermione asked, "Why not? I love Harry and he wouldn't have proposed if he didn't love me."

Pavarti Patil giggled and finally said, "Well, we know that. We were wondering because Harry can't… I mean since he's in that wheelchair and everything…"

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked, still confused. What did Harry's disability have to do with the two of them getting married?

"You know…" Lavender said with a dirty smirk on her face. "The two of you and your wedding night…"

After a moment of trying to decipher what the context of the conversation was, Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, you think… I mean, you think that…?" Brow furrowing, Hermione lowered her voice and looked at the other girls before saying defensively, "Just because Harry can't move his legs doesn't mean he can't… It doesn't mean that he's not able to… do certain things." Getting up quickly without another word, Hermione grabbed a last piece of toast before snatching up her bag and walked briskly out of the Great Hall.

xxxx

"Harry, mate… I know you love Hermione," Ron said as he and Harry headed down to the dungeons. "But there's… something I was wondering about." When Harry looked at him quizzically, Ron asked, "With the paralysis and all, I mean can you actually…?"

Harry rolled his eyes as he stopped outside the Potions classroom. "My legs don't work, Ron," Harry said, opening the door. "The rest of me is just fine. I talked to Healer Rousseau after the Dursleys' trial yesterday. I can't walk but for some reason, that part still works. A little _too_ well, sometimes," Harry added under his breath.

"Sorry," Ron muttered. "It's just… well, everyone else wanted to know." But as he thought of the last thing his friend had said, Ron smirked as he asked, "So what are you thinking about that you're having a problem with—"

"Ron, sometimes you really are insensitive," Harry snapped as he went to the station he shared with Hermione.

xxxx

"Harry?"

Pausing as he headed towards the library after Transfiguration, Harry stopped and turned around when he heard someone calling his name and saw Ginny Weasley coming up to him, holding a small roll of parchment. "Ginny," he said, surprised. Thinking that she wanted to say something about his engagement to Hermione, Harry said, quickly, "Look, I know that you—"

Ginny shook her head, cutting him off midsentence and gave Harry an honest smile. "It's okay, Harry. I'm happy for you. Honestly." Handing over the parchment she added, "Dumbledore gave me this to give to you."

Harry unrolled the message and after a moment looked up at her and said, "I have to go. Thanks, Ginny." Heading up to the headmaster's office, Harry found the headmaster sitting at his desk, a knowing smile on his face. "You wanted to see me, sir?" Harry asked, curiously.

"Yes, Harry…" Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling merrily. "Leaving the Ministry of Magic the other day I couldn't help but notice a certain ring that Miss Granger wore on her left hand and thought I might inquire about a few details." Smiling, he asked, "When are the two of you to be married?"

"I've only just proposed!" Harry said, laughing out loud. It had been a spur of the moment thing and he and Hermione had barely talked about it since he put the ring on her finger. "I don't know, honestly. I-I'd like to do it next summer after she and I turn 17."

"I'll inform Molly at once," Dumbledore replied, nodding. "She wanted to know when to plan your engagement party." His expression turning grave, the headmaster added, "Now… onto less appealing business."

"Voldemort, I presume," Harry guessed. He couldn't think of anything else that would be that serious… unless the Dursleys had somehow escaped Azkaban.

"Naturally," Dumbledore said. "I have been studying what I know of the methods he used to gain his power and I believe that I have devised a way to destroy Voldemort remotely."

Harry moved his wheelchair closer, interested. "How?" he asked, wondering what Dumbledore had devised.

"In the Department of Mysteries Voldemort left you when you felt a great surge of positive emotions: love, friendship… I believe that if you were to invade Voldemort's mind—essentially possess _him_—you would be able to end him once and for all," Dumbledore explained.

Harry thought it over and after a moment asked, "But what's to stop Voldemort from reversing the process and possessing _me_?"

"I, along with whoever else you wanted, would act as a link to your mind," the headmaster replied. "We would encourage you; help you to destroy those bonds of magic which tie Voldemort to this world. He has become so wrapped up in his power I do not expect him to survive with his magic broken."

"How… how soon would we need to do this?" Harry wanted to know.

"Not at this very moment," Dumbledore answered. "But soon. And before Voldemort regains his full powers."

* * *

Harry had never put much stock into the saying 'Beware the Ides of March' until a cool March evening which found him lying on the couch in Dumbledore's office with Sirius, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and Ron. It was two days after a vicious attack by Death Eaters on a muggle orphanage and Dumbledore felt it urgent to proceed in his plan to destroy Voldemort once and for all. "Just relax, Harry," Dumbledore said, standing next to Harry. "Close your eyes…" Harry closed his eyes and focused on the headmaster's voice. "Let your mind drift… let all your thoughts go… Focus on finding the link between you and Voldemort."

Harry felt a surge of anger and hatred but instead of withdrawing from it like he usually did when he felt Voldemort's emotions, he held onto it and used the feeling to push himself into Voldemort's mind.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

_In Voldemort's mind, it felt like the dungeons of Hogwarts but there was a sharp, almost metallic scent on the air… The entire chamber felt like a snake… And all around the room were glowing green chains, rattling quietly in the still, musty air._

"_How did you get here, Potter?" Voldemort said, looking at the teenager standing before him with more than a touch of surprise._

"_You should protect your feelings and emotions more," Harry said, withdrawing his wand as he stood before Voldemort. "Someone might use them to invade your mind." As quickly as he could, Harry fired a spell at the chains but as soon as the chain was destroyed, the whole chamber shook violently and the stone started to crumble a bit, falling to the ground and narrowly missing the two wizards._

"_I wouldn't recommend that, Potter," Voldemort said with an evil grin. "If I die… you die as well. We are linked, Potter…"_

'Look for the link that binds the two of you,'_ Dumbledore's voice said in Harry's head. _'You must first destroy the link before you can safely destroy Voldemort.'

_Harry looked around hurriedly and narrowly missed a Killing Curse Voldemort fired at him. Diving away from another spell, Harry fired his own curse at another one of the chains, again making the room shake and crumble. "So what did it, Tom?" Harry said, trying to distract his foe. "What made you turn into this?" _

_Voldemort fired another spell and was amazed when Harry blocked it easily. "Silence, boy! You know nothing about me!"_

"_Was it the fact that Mummy abandoned you?" Harry said, his eyes still scanning for the link that bound him to Voldemort as he dodged the Dark Lord's spells. "Or was it being the only wizard in an orphanage full of muggles?" Ducking a Cruciatus curse, Harry asked, "You could have manipulated someone into adopting you. Why didn't you? Was it maybe because you felt you deserved to be there? Forgotten? Alone? Knowing that anyone who might have cared for you didn't give a damn about you?"_

"_SILENCE!" Voldemort roared and fired a wild shot which missed Harry but hit some of the chains which seemed to be tangled together. "NO!" he shouted as even more of the room crumbled and collapsed. _

_Harry tried to keep his feet as the room shook even worse. Finally, he saw the link—a small, golden chain in the corner far upper corner of the room. But hitting it would require a very direct shot and Harry needed to get more of the other chains out of the way first. _

"_I know what it's like to be hated for your powers!" Harry said, trying a different plan and going from hostile to sympathetic. "My aunt and uncle would have preferred to dump me at an orphanage and forget about me." Avoiding another series of spells fired from Voldemort's wand, Harry went on. "My uncle beat me and my aunt worked me to death. I didn't matter to them. Just like you didn't seem to matter to anyone until you got to Hogwarts. But even then," Harry added, noticing that Voldemort wasn't firing spells at him at the moment. "You were still alone, right? You had abilities the others didn't. And then you found the truth about your parents. Someone had to pay, right? YOU had to make them pay for everything that had happened to you."_

_Taking advantage of Voldemort's hesitation, Harry fired a few spells at the chains and as they were destroyed, the room started falling apart even more. But while the links of Voldemort's magic were falling apart, the golden chain which bound Voldemort to Harry remained untouched. "I swore…" Voldemort said, pointing his wand at Harry's heart as the teenager backed up a few steps. "That I would destroy all those filthy muggles and mudbloods… Just like my father destroyed my mother! He took her from me!"_

"_And now all of them must pay," Harry finished, as he had a sudden dawning comprehension. "You don't want me here, do you? Asking these questions… playing to your doubts?" Slowly moving into position and mentally calculating the shot, Harry figured he'd have one chance to destroy the last chains including his link to Voldemort. "But you've always had these doubts, haven't you? You pretend to be the most powerful dark wizard ever, but really, you're just an abandoned orphan that no one loved."_

"_ENOUGH!" Voldemort shouted, angrily. "Avada—"_

_Harry waited until Voldemort had just raised his wand before firing a direct shot and hitting the last chains and the link. Immediately, Harry felt the room explode and fell to the floor, his mind unconnected and lost… There was nothing now… no sound… no feeling… no existence._

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Harry… Harry, come on back… It's done. Wake up, Harry…"

_Harry heard the voices. He heard _her_ voice, calling him back… He wanted to be with her… to hold her again…_

"I think he's opening his eyes!"

"Harry, can you hear me?"

_A warm, familiar hand held his… _

"Harry… wake up…"

Harry opened his eyes and the first face he saw was Hermione's, her brown eyes full of concern and love. "Hi…" Harry said, sitting up as Hermione flung her arms around him. "I'm alright, Hermione, really," he insisted, surprised by her reation to him waking up.

"We thought you weren't going to wake up," Ron said as Harry hugged Hermione. "We didn't even know if you were still…"

"I was only out for a little while," Harry said, confused at how relieved everyone looked. Looking around he was suddenly wondering he was in the hospital wing… again. "Wasn't I?" he asked.

"Actually… you've been in a pretty deep coma for more than a month," Sirius said from his seat next to Harry's bed. Harry couldn't help noticing that his godfather looked very much like he had after first escaping from Azkaban—worn and tired and looking like he hadn't slept or cleaned up in ages. "We tried everything to wake you up: potions, spells…" Finally giving Harry a smile, Sirius added, "Hermione, Ginny, _and_ Luna tried kissing you."

"I thought maybe it was like 'Sleeping Beauty'," Hermione said as she put some more pillows behind Harry. "'True love's kiss' and all that." Lowering her voice a bit, she added, "I was really worried you weren't going to come back to us, Harry."

Harry lay back, smiling. "I'd come back from anything just to be with you, 'Mione."

Hermione smiled and soon was locked in a tender, welcoming kiss with Harry.

After a while, though, Harry pulled back a bit and frowned slightly. "You let Ginny and Luna kiss me?"

Hermione's smile was bittersweet as she nodded. "I just wanted you back, Harry. I would have done anything."

Harry didn't know what to say to that.

* * *

_21 Months Later_

_December, 23rd_

_Potter& Granger Wedding_

In the teachers' lounge, Harry sat in his wheelchair before a full length mirror, looking at himself in his father's old wedding robes. He couldn't believe that he was getting married. The robes fit like a glove and even his hair seemed less messy today. It was like a dream and only the fact that he was in a wheelchair reminded him it wasn't. It had been about two and a half years since the car accident and Harry still hadn't regained any further use of his legs. Hearing the door open, Harry looked up to see Sirius standing in the doorway holding up a small box. "Don't want to forget this…" Sirius said, smiling. Seeing that Harry didn't smile back, Sirius stepped into the room and stood beside the mirror. "Not getting cold feet, are you?"

Harry shook his head in a negative, but—unbeknownst to him—just like his mother, Harry's eyes gave him away that he was having doubts. "Last night," he said, quietly. "Hermione and I fell asleep on the couch. After a while, she nudged me awake. She needed to get up, but the way we were positioned… She had to move my legs before she could get up and… help me get into bed." Looking at Sirius, Harry asked, "Is it fair to do this to Hermione? I love her. I want to marry her more than anything. But Sirius, I'm never going to be able to move my legs. I'm never going to have a normal life."

Sirius sighed and put the box with Hermione's wedding band in his pocket for a moment. "Harry, Hermione knows this. She _wants_ to marry you, even though you're in the wheelchair. Yes, it'll be an obstacle at times, but when you really love someone, you don't mind what happens." Walking up to Harry and handing over the ring, he said, "Do it, Harry. Don't let doubts keep you from being happy."

xx

In a small chamber off of the Great Hall, Hermione twirled before the mirrors in her wedding gown.

"I wish your mother could see you today," Jacob Granger said as he stood with his little girl. "You look so beautiful…"

"You couldn't talk Mum into coming?" Hermione said, her mood dropping a bit. The past year, Hermione's mother, Anne, had been somewhat distant with her daughter when it came to the upcoming wedding. And only last month, Anne had resolutely stated that she wouldn't attend the wedding of her only child.

"I've tried talking to Anne but she thinks you and Harry are too young and that you should be marrying someone… able-bodied," Jacob said, with a sigh. He didn't feel like mentioning that last night 'talking' had turned into an all-out fight. Jacob knew that his daughter was an adult by wizarding law and he wasn't about to stop her from doing what she wanted. But Anne was stuck in thinking of Hermione as her little girl—which would always be true, but still…

"I don't care if Harry never walks again!" Hermione shouted, upset at her mother's actions. "I love him! It's my life—my choice!"

"I know, Hermi… I know." Hugging his daughter, Jacob tried to get Hermione's mind off of the situation. "Look, this is _your_ day, honey. Don't worry about Mum. This is _your day_ and I don't want you to think about anything except getting married. Alright?"

"Thanks for being here, Daddy," Hermione said, giving her father a kiss on the cheek before going to give herself a final look-over.

xx

The snow had started falling again as everyone gathered in the Great Hall for the wedding. The magical ceiling allowed for a perfect view of the white, puffy flakes, even though the interior was as warm and welcoming as ever.

The torch brackets along the walls had been cleaned the previous night and now sparkled in the sunlight pouring in through the spotless windows. McGonagall had seen to it that the entire room was spotless and Casey Novak had happily volunteered Slytherin House to personally do the cleaning.

Up at the front of the hall where the staff table usually sat there was a beautiful arch covered with lilies, roses, vanilla orchids, and a mix of sweet smelling parsley, lavender, and mint.

On one side of the arch, Harry sat with Sirius and Ron standing beside him.

On the other side, Ginny stood with Luna as they waited for the ceremony to start.

"Ready, Harry?" Dumbledore asked as he came up to officiate the wedding.

Harry nodded, smiling. "I am," he replied, looking at the headmaster. "I'm nervous… But I'm ready."

Dumbledore signaled to Tonks who started up the music before looking at the Creevey brothers who opened the main doors so that Hermione and her father could come down the aisle ahead of Dobby who was merrily tossing handfuls of rose petals before popping back down to the kitchens to prepare for the reception.

Stopping at the end of the aisle, Hermione turned to her father and gave him a kiss on the cheek before saying, "I love you, Dad."

"Do I get a kiss, too?"

Hermione turned to see her mother standing just behind her. "Mum," Hermione said, surprised by her mother's presence. "I thought you didn't approve of me marrying Harry."

Anne Granger smiled as she kissed her daughter on the forehead. "I received a call from your headmaster," she said, glancing up at Dumbledore before turning back to her daughter. "He reminded me that it's about what _you_ want… not what _I_ want." Giving Hermione one more kiss and a hug she whispered, "And all I want if for you to be happy, Hermione. Now go on, honey. I love you."

Hermione went up to Harry but before taking her fiancé's hand she threw her arms around Dumbledore, saying, "Thank you!"

Dumbledore smiled as Hermione stepped back, a little embarrassed by her action. "It was my pleasure, Miss granger. Now… are the two of you ready?"

Hermione took Harry's hands and nodded. "Yes," they both replied, smiling at each other.

Sirius couldn't help but feel a certain amount of sadness as he looked at Harry. It wasn't because of the teenager's disability but rather because Sirius wished that James and Lily were there to see their son get married. There had been so much of Harry's life that James, Lily, and Sirius had missed but as Harry's godfather observed the proceedings, he promised to never miss any part of Harry's life again.

As Harry recited his vows and slid the wedding band on Hermione's finger he didn't even think of his parents. All he could think about was that he had to be the happiest person in the world. And looking into Hermione's tear-filled eyes, he knew she felt the same as she put a gold band on his hand.

And when Harry and Hermione shared their first kiss as husband and wife, the rest of the world seemed to fade away and they only saw their future together.


End file.
